a   stranp 
or  injury 


—- 


- 


THE  ANCIENT 

BRONZE  IMPLEMENTS, 

WEAPONS,  AND  OKNAMENTS, 

OP 

GEEAT  BEITAIN  AND  IEELAND. 


LONDON 

PRINTED  BY  TOOTH:  AND  CO.,  UIDTSD 
CITY  P.OAU. 


PKEFACE. 


THE  work  which  is  now  presented  to  the  public  has  unfortunately 
been  many  years  in  progress,  as  owing  to  various  occupations,  both 
private  and  public,  the  leisure  at  my  command  has  been  but 
small,  and  it  has  been  only  from  time  to  time,  often  at  long 
intervals,  that  I  have  been  able  to  devote  a  few  hours  to  its 
advancement.  During  this  slow  progress  the  literature  of  the 
subject,  especially  on  the  Continent,  has  increased  in  an  unprece- 
dentedly  rapid  manner,  and  I  have  had  great  difficulty  in  at  all 
keeping  pace  with  it. 

I  have,  however,  done  my  best,  both  by  reading  and  travel,  to 
keep  myself  acquainted  with  the  discoveries  that  were  being  made 
and  the  theories  that  were  being  broached  with  regard  to  bronze 
antiquities,  whether  abroad  or  at  home,  and  I  hope  that  so  far  as 
facts  are  concerned,  and  so  far  as  relates  to  the  present  state  of 
information  on  the  subject,  I  shall  not  be  found  materially 
wanting. 

Of  course  in  a  work  which  treats  more  especially  of  the  bronze 
antiquities  of  the  British  Islands,  I  have  not  felt  bound  to  enlarge 
more  than  was  necessary  for  the  sake  of  comparison  on  the  cor- 
responding antiquities  of  other  countries.  I  have,  however,  in  all 
cases  pointed  out  such  analogies  in  form  and  character  as  seemed 
to  me  of  importance  as  possibly  helping  to  throw  light  on  the 
source  whence  our  British  bronze  civilisation  was  derived. 

It  may  by  some  be  thought  that  a  vast  amount  of  useless 
trouble  has  been  bestowed  in  figuring  and  describing  so  many 
varieties  of  what  were  after  all  in  most  cases  the  ordinary  tools  of 
the  artificer,  or  the  common  arms  of  the  warrior  or  huntsman,  which 
differed  from  each  other  only  in  apparently  unimportant  particulars. 
But  as  in  biological  studies  minute  anatomy  often  affords  the 
most  trustworthy  evidence  as  to  the  descent  of  any  given  organism 


2061220 


PREFACE. 


from  some  earlier  form  of  life,  so  these  minor  details  in  the  form 
and  character  of  ordinary  implements,  which  to  the  cursory 
observer  appear  devoid  of  meaning,  may,  to  a  skilful  archaeologist, 
afford  valuable  clues  by  which  the  march  of  the  bronze  civilisation 
over  Europe  may  be  traced  to  its  original  starting-place. 

I  am  far  from  saying  that  this  has  as  yet  been  satisfactorily 
accomplished,  and  to  my  mind  it  will  only  be  by  accumulating  a 
far  larger  mass  of  facts  than  we  at  present  possess  that  compara- 
tive archeology  will  be  able  to  triumph  over  the  difficulties  with 
which  its  path  is  still  beset. 

Much  is,  however,  being  done,  and  I  trust  that  so  far  as  the 
British  Isles  are  concerned,  the  facts  which  I  have  here  collected 
and  the  figures  which  I  have  caused  to  be  engraved  will  at  all 
events  form  a  solid  foundation  on  which  others  may  be  able  to 
build. 

So  long  ago  as  1876  I  was  able  to  present  to  the  foreign 
archaeologists  assembled  at  Buda-Pest  for  the  International  Con- 
gress of  Prehistoric  Archaeology  and  Anthropology,  a  short  abstract 
of  this  work  in  the  shape  of  my  Petit  Album  de  Vage  du  Bronze 
de  la  Grande  Bretagne,  which  I  have  reason  to  believe  has  been 
found  of  some  service.  At  that  time  my  friend  the  late  Sir 
William  Wilde  was  still  alive,  and  as  the  bronze  antiquities  of 
Ireland  appeared  to  be. ^specially  under  his  charge,  I  had  not  regarded 
them  as  falling  within  the  scope  of  my  book.  After  his  lamented 
death  there  was,  however,  no  possibility  of  interfering  with  his 
labours,  by  my  including  the  bronze  antiquities  of  the  sister  country 
with  those  of  England,  Wales,  and  Scotland  in  the  present  work, 
and  I  accordingly  enlarged  my  original  plan. 

In  carrying  out  my  undertaking  I  have  followed  the  same 
method  as  in  my  work  on  the  "Ancient  Stone  Implements,  &c.,  of 
Great  Britain  ; "  and  it  will  be  found  that  what  I  may  term  the 
dictionary  and  index  of  bronze  antiquities  is  printed  in  smaller 
type  than  the  more  general  descriptive  and  historical  part  of  the 
book.  I  have  in  fact  offered  those  who  take  an  ordinary  interest 
in  archaeological  inquiry  without  wishing  to  be  burdened  with 
minute  details  a  broad  hint  as  to  what  they  may  advantageously 
skip.  To  the  specialist  and  the  local  antiquary  the  portion 
printed  in  smaller  type  will  be  found  of  use,  if  only  as  giving 
references  to  other  works  in  which  the  more  detailed  accounts  of 
local  discoveries  are  given.  These  references,  thanks  to  members 
of  my  own  family,  have  been  carefully  checked,  and  the  accuracy 


PBEFACR  yii 

of  all  the  original  figures  for  this  work,  engraved  for  me  with 
conscientious  care  by  Mr.  Swain,  of  Bouverie  Street,  may,  I  think, 
be  relied  on. 

To  the  councils  of  several  of  our  learned  societies,  and  especially 
to  those  of  the  Societies  of  Antiquaries  of  London  and  Edinburgh, 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  the  Royal  Archaeological  Institute,  and 
the  Royal  Historical  and  ArchaBological  Association  of  Ireland,  I 
am  much  indebted  for  the  loan  of  woodcuts  and  for  other  assist- 
ance. I  have  also  to  thank  the  trustees  and  curators  of  many 
local  museums,  as  well  as  the  owners  of  various  private  collections, 
for  allowing  me  to  figure  specimens,  and  for  valuable  information 
supplied. 

My  warmest  thanks  are,  however,  due  to  Mr.  Augustus  W. 
Franks,  F.R.S.,  and  Canon  Green  well,  F.R.S.,  not  only  for  assist- 
ance in  the  matter  of  illustrations,  but  for  most  kindly  under- 
taking the  task  of  reading  my  proofs.  I  must  also  thank  Mr. 
Joseph  Anderson,  the  accomplished  keeper  of  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh,  and  Mr.  Robert  Day,  F.S.A.,  of  Cork,  for 
having  revised  those  portions  of  the  work  which  relate  to  Scotland 
and  Ireland. 

The  Index  has  been  carefully  compiled  by  my  sister,  Mrs. 
Hubbard.  As  was  the  case  with  those  of  my  "  Ancient  Stone  Im- 
plements," and  "Ancient  British  Coins,"  it  is  divided  into  two  parts; 
the  one  referring  generally  to  the  subject  matter  of  the  book,  and 
the  other  purely  topographical.  The  advantages  of  such  a  division 
in  a  book  of  this  character  are  obvious. 

In  conclusion,  I  venture  to  prefer  the  request  that  any  dis- 
coveries of  new  types  of  instruments  or  of  deposits  of  bronze 
antiquities  may  be  communicated  to  me. 

JOHN  EVANS. 

NASH  MILLS,  HEMEL  HEMPSTED, 
March,  1881. 


CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

The  Succession  of  the  Stone,  Bronze,  and  Iron  Ages — A  Copper  Age  in  America — 
Scriptural  Notices  of  Bronze — Bronze  preceded  Iron  in  ancient  Egypt — Bronze 
in  ancient  Greece — The  Metals  mentioned  by  Homer — Iron  in  ancient  Greece 
— Bronzes  among  other  ancient  Nations — Use  of  Iron  in  Gaul  and  Italy — 
Disputes  as  to  the  three  Periods — The  Succession  of  Iron  to  Bronze — The  Pre- 
servation of  ancient  Iron 1 

CHAPTER  II. 

CELTS. 

Origin  of  the  word  Celt— Views  of  early  Antiquaries— Conjectures  as  to  the  Use  of 

Celts — Opinions  of  modern  Writers 27 

CHAPTER  III. 

FLAT  AND   FLANGED    CELTS. 

Flat  Celts  from  Cyprus  and  Hissarlik— Discoveries  of  Flat  Celts  in  Barrows— Those 
ornamented  on  the  Faces— Flanged  Celts— Those  from  Arreton  Down— And 
from  Barrows— Decorated  Flanged  Celts— Flat  Celts  found  in  Scotland— Deco- 
rated Scottish  Specimens— Flat  Celts  found  in  Ireland— Decorated  Irish  Speci- 
mens—Character of  their  Decorations— Flat  Celts  with  Lateral  Stops  .  .  39 

CHAPTER  IV. 

WINGED   CELTS  AND   PALSTAVES. 

Origin  of  the  term  Palstave — Celts  with  a  Stop-ridge — Varieties  of  Winged  Celts 
— Transitional  Forms — Palstaves  with  Ornaments  on  Face — With  Central  Rib 
on  the  Blade— Shortened  by  Wear— With  a  Transverse  Edge— Looped  Pal- 
staves—With Ribs  on  Blade— With  Shield-like  Ornaments— With  Vertical 
Ribs  on  Blade — With  semi-circular  Side-wings  hammered  over — Iron  Palstaves 
imitated  from  Bronze — Palstaves  with  two  Loops — Scottish  Palstaves — Irish 
Palstaves— Lopped  Irish  Palstaves— Irish  Palstaves  with  Transverse  Edge— 
Comparison  with  Continental  Forms 70 

CHAPTER  V. 

SOCKETED   CELTS. 

Terms,  "the  Recipient"  and  "the  Received" — Evolution  from  Palstaves — With 
"Flanches,"  or  curved  Lines,  on  the  Faces — Plain,  with  a  Beading  round  the 


x  CONTENTS. 

PAOK 

Mouth-Of  a  Gaulish  type -With  vertical  Ribs  on  the  Faces- With  Ribs  end- 
ing in  Pellets— With  Ribs  and  Pellets  on  the  Faces -With  Ribs  and  Ring 
Ornaments -Variously  ornamented— Of  octagonal  Section— With  the  Loop  on 
one  Face— Without  Loops— Of  diminutive  Size— Found  in  Scotland— 1  ound 
in  Ireland— Comparison  with  Foreign  Forms— Mainly  of  Native  Manufacture 
in  Britain— Those  formed  of  Iron 10< 

CHAPTER  VI. 

METHODS  OF   HAFTING   CELTS. 

The  perforated  Axes  of  Bronze— Celts  in  Club-like  Handles— Their  Hafts,  as  seen 
in   Barrows— Hafting  after  the  manner  of  Axes— Socketed   Celts  used  as 

Hatchets Hafted  Celt  found  at  Chiusi — Hafts,  as  seen  at  Hallbtatt — Celts  in 

some  instances  mounted  as  Adzes— No  perforated  Axe-heads  in  Britain— 
Hafting  Celts  as  Chisels I'*6 

CHAPTER  VII. 

CHISELS,   GOUGES,   HAMMERS,   AND   OTHER  TOOLS. 

Simple  form  of  Chisel  rare— Tanged  Chisels— Chisels  with  Lugs  at  sides— Socketed 
Chisels— Tanged  Gouges— Socketed  Gouges— Socketed  Hammers— Irish  Ham- 

mers Method  of  Hafting  Hammers — French  Anvils — Saws  and  Files  almost 

unknown  in  Britain — Tongs  and  Punches — The  latter  used  in  Orna- 
menting— Awls,  Drills,  or  Prickers  frequently  found  in  Barrows — Awls  used 
in  Sewing— Tweezers— Needles— Fish-hooks IGo 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

SICKLES. 
Method  of  Hafting— Sickles  with  Projecting  Knobs— With  Sockets—Sickles  found 

in  Scotland  and  Ireland — Found  on  the  Continent 1 94 

CHAPTER  IX. 
KNIVES,   RAZORS,   ETC. 

The  Socketed  Form — Scottish  and  Irish  Knives — Curved  Knives — Knives  with 
broad  Tangs — With  Lanceolate  Blades— Of  peculiar  Types— Double-edged 
Razors — Scottish  and  Irish  Razors— Continental  Forms 204 

CHAPTER  X. 
DAGGERS  AND   THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED   BLADES. 

Tanged  Knives  or  Daggers— Knife-Daggers  with  three  Rivets — Method  of  Hafting 
Daggers — Bone  Pommels  —Amber  Hilt  inlaid  with  Gold — Hilts  with  numerous 
Rivets — Inlaid  and  Ivory  Hilts — Hilts  of  Bronze — Knife-Daggers  with  five  or 
six  Rivets — Knife-Daggers  from  Scotland — From  Ireland — Daggers  with 
Ornamented  Blades— With  Mid-ribs— With  Ogival  Outline— Rapier-shaped 
Blades— Rapiers  with  Notches  at  the  Base— With  Ribs  on  the  Faces— Rapiers 
with  Ox-horn  and  Bronze  Hilts — Bayonet-like  Blades 222 

CHAPTER  XI. 

TANGED   AND   SOCKETED   DAGGERS  OR  SPEAR-HEADS,   HALBERDS,   AND  MACES 
Arreton  Down  type  of  Spear-heads— With  Tangs  and  with  Socket— Scandinavian 
and  German  Halberds — The  Chinese  Form — Irish  Halberds — Copper  Blades 
less  brittle  than  Bronze — Broad  Irish  Form — Scottish  Halberds — English  and 
Welsh  Halberds— The  Form  known  in  Spain — Maces,  probably  Mediaeval       .  257 


CONTENTS.  XI 


CHAPTER  XII. 
LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS. 

TAOK 

Their  Occurrence  in  British  Barrows  not  authenticated — Occur  with  Interments  in 
Scandinavia — The  Roman  Sword — British  Swords — Disputes  as  to  their  Age — 
Hilts  proportional  to  Blades — Swords  with  Central  Slots  in  Hilt-plate — With 
many  Rivet-holes — With  Central  Rib  on  Blade — Representation  of  SAVord  on 
Italian  Coin — Those  with  Hilts  of  Bronze — Localities  where  found — Comparison 
with  Continental  Types — Swords  found  in  Scotland — In  Ireland — In  France — 
Swords  with  Hilts  of  Bone — Decorated  with  Gold— Continental  Types — Early 
Iron  Swords 273 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

SCABBAEDS  AND   CHAPES. 

Sheaths  with  Bronze  Ends — Wooden  Sheaths — Bronze  Sheaths — Ends  of  Sword-     » 
Sheaths    or    Scabbard   Ends — Chapes    from    England  and  Ireland — Spiked 
Chapes — Mouth-pieces  for  Sheaths — Ferrules  on  Sword-Hilts  .         .         .         .301 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

SPEAR-HEADS,  LANCE-HEADS,  ETC. 

Different  Types— Leaf-shaped — With  a  Fillet  along  the  Midrib — Ornamented  on 
the  Sockets — With  Loops  at  the  Sides — From  Ireland — Decorated  on  the 
Blade— With  Loops  at  the  Baso  of  the  Blade— Of  Cruciform  Section  near  the 
Point — With  Openings  in  the  Blade— With  Flanges  at  the  Side  of  the  Openings 
— With  Lunate  Openings  in  the  Blade — Barbed  at  the  Base — Ferrules  for 
Spear-shafts — African  Spear  Ferrules — Continental  Types — Early  Iron  Spear- 
heads   310 

CHAPTER  XV. 

SHIELDS,   BUCKLERS,   AND   HELMETS. 

Shields  with  numerous  raised  Bosses — With  Concentric  Ribs — With  Concentric 
Rings  of  Knobs— Shields  found  in  Scotland — In  England  and  Wales — Wooden 
Bucklers— The  Date  of  Circular  Bucklers— Bronze  Helmets— Their  Date  .  343 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

TRUMPETS  AND   BELLS. 

Trumpets  found  in  Ireland — Trumpets  with  Lateral  Openings — The  Dowris  Hoard 
— Riveted  Trumpets — The  Caprington  Horn — Trumpets  found  in  England — 
Bells  found  in  Ireland 3-57 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

PINS. 

Pins  with  Flat  Heads— With  Crutched  Heads— With  Annular  Heads— Those  of 
large  Size — With  Spheroidal  Heads — With  Ornamental  Expanded  Heads — 
From  Scotland — From  Denmark — Their  Date  difficult  to  determine  .  .  365 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

TORQUES,   BRACELETS,    RINGS,   EAR-RINGS,   AND   PERSONAL   ORNAMENTS. 

The  Gaulish  Torque — Gold  Torques — Funicular  Torques — Ribbon  Torques — Those 
of  the  Late  Celtic  Period — Penannular  Torques  and  Bracelets— Bracelets  en- 
graved with  Patterns — Beaded  and  Fluted — Looped,  with  Cup-shaped  Ends — 
Late  Celtic  Bracelets — Rings — Rings  with  others  cast  on  them— Coiled  Rings 
found  with  Torques — Finger-rings — Ear-rings — Those  of  Gold — Beads  of  Tin 
— Of  Glass — Rarity  of  Personal  Ornaments  in  Britain  ....  374 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 
CLASPS,  BUTTONS,   BUCKLES,  AND  MISCELLANEOUS   OBJECTS. 

PAGE 

Difficulty  in  Determining  the  Use  of  some  Objects — Looped  Sockets  and  Tubes — 
Possibly  Clasps — Perforated  Rings  forming  a  kind  of  Brooch — Rings  used  in 
Harness — Brooches — Late  Celtic — Buttons — Circular  Plates  and  Broad  Hoops- 
Perforated  Discs — Slides  for  Straps — Jingling  Ornaments — Objects  of  Uncertain 
Use — Rod,  with  Figures  of  Birds  upon  it — Figures  of  Animals  .  .  .  396 

CHAPTER  XX. 

VESSELS,  CALDRONS,   ETC. 

Fictile  Vessels — Gold  Cup — Bronze  Vessels  not  found  in  Barrows — Caldrons  found 
in  Scotland — In  Ireland — Some  of  an  Etruscan  Form — The  Skill  exhibited  in 
their  Manufacture 407 

CHAPTER  XXT. 

METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  THE  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE. 

Composition  of  Bronze— Lead  absent  in  early  Bronze— Sources  of  Tin  and  Copper 
— Analyses  of  Bronze  Antiquities — Cakes  of  Copper  and  Lumps  of  Metal — Tin 
discovered  in  Hoards  of  Bronze — Ingots  of  Tin — Methods  of  Casting — Moulds 
of  Stone  for  Celts,  Palstaves,  Daggers,  Swords,  and  Spear-heads — Moulds  of 
Bronze  for  Palstaves  and  Celts — The  Harty  Hoard — Bronze  Mould  for  Gouges 
— Moulds  found  in  other  Countries — Moulds  formed  of  Burnt  Clay — Jets  or 
Runners— The  Processes  for  Preparing  Bronze  Instruments  for  Use— Rubbers 
and  Whetstones — Decoration — Hammering  out  and  Sharpening  the  Edges  .  415 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

CHRONOLOGY  AND   ORIGIN   OF  BRONZE. 
Inferences  from  number  of  Types — Division  of  Period  into  Stages— The  Evidence 

of  Hoards — Their  different   Kinds — Personal,  Merchants',  and  Founders' 

Lists  of  Principal  Hoards — Inferences  from  them — The  Transition  from  Bronze 
to  Iron— Its  probable  Date— Duration  of  Bronze  Age— Burial  Customs  of  the 
Period— Different  Views  as  to  the  Sources  of  Bronze  Civilisation— Suggested 
Provinces  of  Bronze— The  Britannic  Province— Comparison  of  British  and 
Continental  Types— Foreign  Influences  in  Britain— Its  Commercial  Relations 
—Imported  Ornaments— Condition  of  Britain  during  the  Bronze  Age— General 
Summary 455 


WOODCUT  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  references  are  to  the  original  sources  of  such  cuts  as  have  not  been  engraved 
expressly  for  this  book. 


CHAPTER  III. 

FLAT  AND   FLANGED  CELTS. 
via.  PAGE 

1.  Cyprus 40 

2.  Butterwick 41 

3.  Moot  Low 44 

Llew.  Jewitt,  F.S.A.,  "Grave  Mounds," 

fig.  187. 

4.  Yorkshire 45 

5.  Weymouth 46 

6.  Read 47 

7.  Suffolk 48 

8.  ArretonDown 49 

Archaologia,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  329. 

9.  Plymstock 50 

10.  , 50 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346. 

11.  Thames 52 

12.  Norfolk 52 

13.  Dorsetshire 53 

14.  Lewes 53 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  167. 

15.  Ely 53 

16.  Barrow 54 

17.  Liss 54 

18.  Rhosnesney 55 

19.  Drumlanrig 56 

20.  Lawhead 57 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  105. 

21.  Nairn 58 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  N.S. 

22.  Falkland 59 

23.  Greenlees 59 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  601. 

24.  Perth 60 

25.  Applegarth 60 

26.  Dams 61 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  120. 

27.  Ballinamallard 61 

28.  North  of  Ireland 62 

29.  Ireland 62 

30.  Tipperary 62 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  410. 

31.  Ireland    .  .  63 


PIG.  PAGE 

32.  Connor 64 

33.  Clontarf 65 

34.  Ireland 65 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  248. 


35.  Ireland    .... 

....     66 

36.  Trim  

....     66 

37.  Ireland    .... 

....     66 

38.        „         .... 

....     66 

39.  Punched  patterns  . 

....     67 

40.          ,                „      . 

....     67 

41.          ,                „       . 

....     67 

42           ,                 „ 

....     67 

43.          ,                 „ 

....     67 

Wilde  "  Catal.  Mus.  R. 

I.  A.,"  figs.  286 

to  290. 

44.  Annoy    

....     68 

45.  Ireland    .... 

....     68 

46. 

....     69 

47.         „          .... 

....     69 

CHAPTER 

IV. 

WINGED   CELTS  AND 

PALSTAVES. 

48.  Icelandic  Palstave 

....    71 

49. 

....    71 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol. 

vii.  p.  74. 

50.  Wigton  
51.  Chollerford  Bridge    . 

....     73 
....     74 

52.  Chatham.     .     .     . 

....    74 

53.  Burwell  Fen     .     .     . 

....     75 

54.  BuckneU.     .     .     . 

....     75 

65.  Culham   

....     75 

56.  Reeth  

....     76 

57.  Dorchester  .     .     .     . 

....     76 

58.  Colwick  .... 

....     77 

59.  Barrington  .     .     .     . 

....     78 

60.  Harston  

....     78 

61.  Shippey  

....     79 

62.  Severn     

...     80 

63.  Sunningwell     .     .     . 
64.  Weymouth  .     .     .     . 

....     80 
....     82 

65.  Burwell  Fen     .     .     . 

....     82 

66.  East  Harnham.     .     . 

....     83 

67.  Burwell  Fen     .     .     . 

....     83 

WOODCUT  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


no. 

68.  Thames  .... 

69.  Stibbard      .     .     . 

70.  Irthington  .     .     . 

71.  North  Owersby   . 

72.  Bonn     .... 

73.  Dorchester.     .     . 

74.  Wallingford    .     . 

75.  Stanton  Harcourt 

76.  Brassingtou    .     • 

77.  Bath 

78.  Oldbury  HiU  .     . 


PAGE 

.     84 
.     84 


...  85 
...  87 
...  88 
...  88 
...  80 
...  89 
...  90 
._. .  ...  91 

80.  Honington 9l 

81.  Ely  . 92 

82.  Bottisham £ 

83.  Nettleham 93 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

84.  Cambridge. 93 

85.  Carlton  Rode 94 

86.  Penvores 96 

87.  West  Buckland 96 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  107. 

88.  Bryn  Crug S 

89.  Andalusia 97 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  C9. 

90.  Burreldale  Moss 98 

91.  Balcarry 98 

92.  Pettycur 99 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  377. 

93.  Ireland IOC 

94.  „ 100 

95.  „ 101 

96.  North  of  Ireland 101 

97.  Lanesborough 101 

98.  Trillick 102 

99.  Ireland 102 

100.  „ 102 

101.  „        102 

102.  „ 103 

103.  „        103 

104.  „        103 

105.  Miltown 104 

106.  Ireland 105 

107.  „ 105 

108.  , 105 

109.  BaUymena 105 


CHAPTER  V. 

SOCKETED  CELTS. 

110.  HighRoding 109 

111.  Dorchester,  Oxon 109 

112.  Wilts 110 

113.  Harty 110 

114.  „        Ill 

115.  Dorchester,  Oxon Ill 

116.  Reach  Fen 112 

117.  „         „        112 

118.  Canterbury 114 

119.  LTsk 114 

120.  Alfriston    .  115 


KIG.  I>AGB 

121.  Cambridge  Fens 116 

122.  HighRoding H6 

123.  Chrishall 117 

124.  Reach  Fen 117 

125.  Barrington H7 

126.  Mynydd-y-Glas 119 

127.  Stogursey 120 

128.  Guildford 120 

129.  Frettenham 120 

ISO.  Ely 121 

131.  Caston 121 

132.  Carlton  Rode 122 

133.  Fornham 122 

134.  Fen  Dittoii 123 

135.  Bottisham 123 

136.  Winwick 123 

137.  Kingston 124 

138.  Cayton  Carr 124 

139.  Lakenheath 125 

140.  Thames 125 

141.  Kingston 125 

142.  „  126 

143.  Thames 127 

144.  Givendale 127 

145.  Cambridge 127 

146.  Blandford 127 

147.  Ireland  (?) 128 

148.  Barrington 128 

149.  Hounslow 128 

150.  Wallingford 128 

151.  Newham 129 

152.  Westow 130 

153.  Wandsworth 130 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  378. 

154.  \Vhittlesea 130 

155.  Nettleham 132 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

156.  Croker  Collection 132 

157.  Nettleham 132 

Arch.  Journ.  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

158.  Ulleskelf 132 

159.  Reach  Fen 133 

160.  Carlton  Rode 133 

161.  Arras 134 

162.  Bell's  Mills 135 

"  Catal.  Ant.  Mus.  Ed." 

163.  North  Knapdale 136 

164.  Bell's  Mills 136 

165.  „         „        136 

"  Catal.  Ant.  Mus.  Ed." 

166.  Leswalt' 137 

Ayr  and  Wig  ton  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  11. 

167.  Ireland 138 

168.  „  138 

169.  Belfast 139 

170.  Ireland 139 

171.  „  139 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  280. 

172.  Athboy 140 

173.  Meath 140 

174.  Ireland 140 

175.  Newtown  Crommolin   ....  141 

176.  North  of  Ireland 141 


WOODCUT    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


FIG.  PAGE 

177.  Ireland 141 

178.  „        142 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  275. 

179.  Kertch 142 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  91. 


CHAPTEE  VI. 

METHODS   OP   HAFTING  CELTS. 

180.  Stone  Axe  of  Montezuma  II.     .  148 

181.  Aymara  Stone  Hatchet     .     .     .148 

182.  Modern  African  Axe  of  Iron      .  149 

183.  Stone  Axe,  Eobenhausen  .     .     .  150 

184.  Bronze  Axe,  HaUein     ....   152 

185.  Karon,  Brigue 154 

186.  Edenderry 155 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  257. 

187.  Chiusi 156 

188.  Winwick 158 

189.  Everley 163 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CHISELS,   GOUGES,   AND   OTHER  TOOLS. 

190.  Plymstock 166 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346. 

191.  Heathery  Burn 166 

192.  Glenluce 166 

192*  Carlton  Rode 167 

193.  Wallingford 168 

194.  Reach  Fen 168 

195.  Thixendale 168 

196.  Yattendon 169 

197.  Broxton 169 

198.  Scotland 170 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  613. 

199.  Ireland 170 

200.  Carlton  Rode 171 

201.  Westow 172 

202.  Heathery  Burn  Cave     .     .     .     .172 

203.  Carlton  Rode 173 

204.  Thorndon 174 

205.  Harty 174 

206.  TJndley 175 

207.  Carlton  Rode 175 

208.  Tay 175 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  127. 

209.  Ireland 176 

210.  Thorndon 178 

211.  Harty 178 

212.  „  178 

213.  Carlton  Rode 178 

214.  Taunton 178 

215.  Ireland 179 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  66. 

216.  Dowris 179 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  65. 

217.  Fresne  la  Mere 182 

218.  „  „        182 

219.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    ....  185 


FIG.  PAGE 

220.  Hatty 186 

221.  Reach  Fen 180 

222.  Ebnall 186 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  66. 

223.  Upton  Lovel 189 

Archceologia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  466. 

224.  Thorndon 189 

225.  Butterwick 189 

226.  Bulford 190 

Arch&oloyia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  465. 

227.  Winterbourn  Stoke      ....  190 

228.  Wiltshire 191 

Archaologia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  467. 

229.  Llangwyllog 192 

230.  Ireland 192 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  403. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SICKLES. 

231.  Mcerigen 196 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  192. 

232.  Edington  Bur.tle 197 

233.  „  , 197 

234.  Thames 198 

235.  Near  Bray 199 

236.  Near  Errol,  Perthshire     .     .     .200 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  378. 

237.  Garvagh,  Deny 200 

238.  Athlone 201 


CHAPTER  IX. 

KNIVES,   RAZORS,   ETC. 

239.  Wicken  Fen 204 

240.  Thorndon 205 

241.  Reach  Fen 205 

242.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    .     .     .     .206 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132. 

243.  Kilgraston,  Perthshire .     .     .     .206 

244.  Kejft 207 

245.  Ireland 208 

246.  Moira 209 

247.  Fresne  la  Mere 209 

248.  Skye 209 

Wilson's  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i. 

p.  400. 

249.  Wester  Ord 209 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  viii.  p.  310. 

250.  Reach  Fen 210 

251.  „          „ 210 

252.  Heathery  Burn  Cave   .     .     .     .212 

253.  Harty 212 

254.  Ireland 212 

255.  Ballyclare 213 

256.  Reach  Fen 213 

257.  Ballycastle 213 

258.  Ireland 213 

259.  Wigginton 214 

260.  Isle  of  Harty 214 


WOODCUT    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


WO.  PAGE 

261.  AUhallows,  Hoo 214 

262.  Cottle 215 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  301. 

263.  Reach  Fen 216 

264.  Lady  Low 216 

265.  Winterslow 216 

266.  Priddy 216 

267.  Balblair 217 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  476. 

268.  Kogart 217 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  p.  431. 

269.  Wallingford 218 

270.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    ....  218 

271.  Dunbar.* 219 

272.  „ 219 

273.  „ 219 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  p.  440. 

274.  Ireland 219 

Wilde's  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  433. 

275.  Kinleith 220 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  87. 

276.  Nidau 221 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  91. 

CHAPTER  X. 

DAGGERS    AND    THEIR    HILTS. — RAPIER- 
SHAPED   BLADES. 

277.  Roundway 223 

278.  Driffield     ........  224 

279.  Butterwick 225 

280.  Helperthorpe 227 

281.  „  227 

282.  Garton .     .     .228 

Archteologia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  441. 

283.  Wilmslow 228 

284.  Hammeldon  Down       .     .     .     .229 

285.  Reach  Fen 230 

286.  AUhallows,  Hoo 230 

287.  Brigmilston 231 

288.  Leicester 231 

289.  Normanton 232 

290.  Roke  Down 233 

291.  Ireland 235 

292.  Belleek .     .  235 

Journ.  JR.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  196. 

293.  Ireland 235 

294.  Woodyates 236 

295.  Homington 237 

296.  Idmiston 237 

297.  Dow  Low 239 

298.  Cleigh 239 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Soc.,  vol.  x.  p.  84. 

299.  Collessie 239 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  440. 

300.  Musdin 240 

301.  Plymstock 240 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346. 

302.  Winterbourn  Stoke      .     .     .     .240 

303.  Camerton 243 

304.  Cambridge 243 


. 

305.  Magherafelt 245 

Journ.  JR.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  286. 

306.  Arreton  Down 245 

307.  Kinghorn 245 

SOS.  CoUoony 246 

309.  Ireland 246 

Wilde's  "  Catal.  Mns.  R.  I.  A."  fig.  347. 

310.  Kilrea 247 

311.  Thames 247 

312.  Thatcham 247 

313.  Coveney 249 

314.  Thames 249 

315.  Chatteris 251 

316.  Thetford 251 

317.  Londonderry 251 

318.  Lissane 252 

Wilde's  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  314. 

319.  Galbally 253 

Journ.  It.  S.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

4th  8.,  vol.  ii.  p.  197. 

320.  Tipperary 254 

321.  Ely 255 

322.  North  of  Ireland 255 

323.  Raphoe 255 

CHAPTER  XI. 

TANGED    AND   SOCKETED    DAGGERS,     OR 
SPEAR-HEADS,  HALBERDS  AND  MACES. 

324.  Arreton  Down 258 

325.  Stratford  le  Bow 258 

326.  Matlock 259 

327.  Plymstock 259 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  349. 

328.  Arreton  Down 260 

329.  A°rup 261 

Montelius,  "  Sver.  Forntid,"  fig.  131. 

330.  China 262 

331.  Ireland 264 

332.  Cavan 266 

333.  Kewtown  Limavady     ....  267 

334.  Ballygawley 267 

335.  Falkland    ." 268 

336.  Stranraer 268 

froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  423. 

337.  Harbyrnriggc 269 

338.  Shropshire 269 

339.  Lidgate 271 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  181. 

340.  Great  Bedwin 271 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  411. 

341.  Ireland 271 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  361. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS. 

342.  Battersea 278 

343.  Barrow 279 

344.  Newcastle 281 


WOODCUT   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


FIO. 

345    Wetheringsett 

PAGE 

283 
284 
284 
286 
286 
287 

288 
288 
290 
292 
292 
292 
292 
294 
294 
i, 

295 
295 
I, 

295 
296 
322. 

FIG. 

386.  Reach  Fen      
387.  Ireland.     .     . 

PACK 
.     317 

317 

346.  Tiverton     
347.  Kingston    
348.  Ely    
349.  River  Cherwell    
350.  Lincoln  
Proc.  Sot:  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  199. 
351.  Whittingham      
352.  Brechin      
353.  Edinburgh      
354.  Newtown  Limavady     .     .     . 
355.  Ireland  
356.        „       
357.        „       
358.  Muckno     
359. 
Journ.  R.  H.  $  A.  Assoc.  of  Ir  elan 
3rd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  23. 
360    Muckno 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig. 
388.  North  of  Ireland     .... 
389.  Ireland  
Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig. 
390.  Reach  Fen      
391.  Thorndon  
392.  Culham.          .     . 

367. 
.  319 
.  319 
368. 
.  319 
.  319 
.  320 
.   320 
382. 
.  321 
.  323 
.  323 
323 

393.  Athenrv 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig. 
394.  Thetford    
395.  Lakenheath    
396.  Near  Cambridge       .... 
397.  North  of  Ireland  .     .     . 

398.  Ireland  
399.  Thames  
400.  Ireland  

401.  Near  Ball  vmena.     .     . 
402.  Ireland.  "  
403.         „ 

.  324 
.  324 
.  324 
.  325 
.  326 
.  326 
.  326 

'S. 

327 

361.  Mully  lagan 

Journ.  R.  H.  $  A.  A-snoc.  of  Jrelani 
4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  257. 
362.  Mullylagan     
363.  Ireknd  
Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig. 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

SCABBARDS   AND   CHAPES. 

404.         „       
Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig 
385,  386,  378. 
405.  Elford   .... 

406.  Isleham  Fen  .     . 
407.  Stibbard     
408.  Ireland  
409.  Lakenheath  Fen  .     . 
410.  Nettleham.     .     .     . 

.  328 
.  329 
.  329 
.   329 
.   330 

364.  Isleworth 302 

365.  Guilsfield 303 

366.  River  Isis,  near  Dorchester   .     .  303 

367.  Ireland 303 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  335. 

368.  Stogursey,  Somerset     .     .     .     .  304 

369.  Brechin.     .     . 304 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  81. 

370.  Pant-y-Maen 304 

371.  Reach'  Fen 306 

372.  Cloonmore 305 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  336. 

373.  Stoke  Ferry 305 

374.  Keelogue  Ford,  Ireland    .     .     .306 

375.  Mildenhall 306 

376.  Thames 307 

377.  Isle  of  Harty 308 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 

378.  Thames,  London 312 

379.  Lough  Gur 312 

380.  „         „         312 

381.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    .     .     .     .312 

382.  Nettleham 314 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  159. 

383.  Achtertyre 315 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435. 

384.  North  of  Ireland 316 

385.  Newark 317 


Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160, 
411.  Knockans  . 


412.  Lurgan 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p. 

413.  Ireland 

414.  Antrim 

415.  Thames 

416.  Naworth  Castle 

417.  Blakehope 

418.  Whittingham 

419.  Winmarleigh 

420.  Burwell  Fen  .     .     . 

421.  Denhead 

"  Catal.  Ant.  Mus.  Ed.,"  p.  S8 

422.  Speen 

423.  Nettleham. 


.  331 
.  332 
65. 
.  332 
.  332 
.  333 
.  333 
.  334 
.  334 
.  335 
.  336 
.  337 


337 
339 
Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

424.  Guilsfield 339 

425.  Glancych 341 

426.  Fulbourn 341 

427.  Hereford     .  .  341 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,   AND   HELMETS. 

428.  Little  Wittenham 344 

Messrs.  James  Parker  &  Co. 

429.  Harlech 345 

430.  Coveney 346 

431.  „  347 

432.  Beith 347 

433.  „          348 


WOODCUT   ILLUSTRATION S. 


»IO.  PAGK 

434.  Beith 349 

Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,  vol.  i.  p.  66. 

435.  Yotholm 350 

436.  „  350 

437.  , 350 

Proa.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  165. 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

TRUMPETS  AND   BELLS. 

438.  Limerick 357 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.I.  A.,"  fig.  360. 

439.  Tralee 358 

440.  „        359 

441.  „        359 

Journ.  R.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  422. 

442.  Africa 359 

443.  Derrynane 360 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  529. 

444.  Portglenone 361 

Journ.  R.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  422. 

443.  The  Caprington.  Horn  ....  362 

Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,  vol.  i.  p.  74. 

446.  Dowris 364 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  523. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 


447.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    .     .     .     .365 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  130. 

448.  Brigmilston 366 

449.  Everley 366 

450.  Bryn  Crug 367 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  246. 

451.  Taunton 367 

452.  Chilton  Bustle 367 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  106. 

453.  Ireland 368 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  452. 

454.  River  Wandle 368 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  8. 

455.  Scratchbury 369 

456.  Camerton 369 

Both  from  Archceologia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  468. 

457.  Ireland 370 

458.  „       370 

459.  Cambridge 370 

460.  Ireland 370 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  447. 

461.  North  of  Ireland 370 

462.  Keelogue  Ford 371 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  449. 

463.  Ireland 371 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A."  fig.  448. 

464.  Edinburgh 372 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  New  S.,  vol.  i. 

p.  322. 

465.  Ireland 372 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  450. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

TORQUES,  BRACELETS,  RINGS,  EAR-RINGS, 
AND   PERSONAL   ORNAMENTS. 

KIQ.  PAGE 

466.  Wedmore 375 

467.  „  376 

468.  West  Buckland 377 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  107. 

469.  Wedmore 378 

470.  Yarnton 379 

471.  Montgomeryshire 380 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  467. 

472.  Achtertyre 382 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435. 

473.  Redhill 382 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  138. 

474.  Scilly 383 

475.  Liss 383 

476.  Stoke  Prior 384 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  200. 

477.  Stobo  Castle 384 

Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  277- 

478.  Guernsey 385 

Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  344. 

479.  Cornwall 385 

480.  Normanton 385 

Archceologia,  vol.  xliii.  p.  469. 

481.  West  Buckland 386 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  107. 

482.  Ham  Cross 386 

483.  Heathery  Burn  Cavo    ....  386 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  131. 

484.  County  Cavan 387 

485.  Cowlam 387 

486.  „  388 

487.  Ireland 389 

Wilde,  '<  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  480. 

488.  Woolmer  Forest 390 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  83. 

489.  Dumbarton 390 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  24. 

490.  Cowlam 392 

491.  Goodmanham 392 

Greenwell's  "British  Barrows,"  p.  324. 

492.  Orton 392 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  viii.  p.  30. 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

CLASPS,   BUTTONS,   BUCKLES,    AND 
MISCELLANEOUS   OBJECTS. 

493.  Reach  Fen 397 

494.  „        „         397 

495.  Broadward      .     .' 397 

Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  354. 

496.  Trillick 398 

Journ.  R.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland, 

3rd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  164. 

497.  Ireland 399 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  494. 

498.  Cowlam 400 

499.  Reach  Fen 400 


WOODCUT    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Kill.  PAGE 

500.  Edinburgh 401 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  New  S.,  vol.  i. 

p.  322. 
.301.  Heathery  Burn  Cave    .     .     .     .402 

502.  „  „  ....  402 
Both  from  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S., 

vol.  iii.  p.  236. 

503.  Harty 403 

504.  Dreuil,  Amiens 404 

505.  Abergele 404 

506.  „  404 

507.  , 404 

508.  Drouil,  Amiens 405 

CHAPTER  XX. 

VESSELS,    CALDRONS,   ETC. 

509.  Goldcii  Cup,  Rillaton    ....  408 
Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  189. 

510.  Kincardine  Moss 410 

Wilson,  "Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i. 

p.  409. 

511.  Ireland 411 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  407. 

512.  Ireland 412 

Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  409. 

513.  Capecastle  Bog 413 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

METAL,   MOULDS,  AND  THE   METHOD  OF 
MANUFACTURE. 

514.  Falmouth 426 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  39. 


i   515.  Ballymena 429 

1   516.  Ireland 431 

:   517.         „          431 

518.  Ballymoney 433 

519.  Broughshano 433 

520.  Knighton 434 

521.  „          434 

|   522.  Maghera,  Co.  Deny 435 

I   523.  Lough  Gur 436 

Arch.  Jotirti.,  vol.  xx.  p.  170. 

;  524.  Campbelton 437 

i  525.  „  437 

!   526.  „  437 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  48. 

527.  HothamCarr 439 

528.  Wiltshire 440 

529.  „         440 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  158. 

530.  Harty        441 

531.  „  442 

532.  „  446 

533.  Heathery  Burn  Cave  .     .     .     .448 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd   S.,  vol.  ii. 

p.  132. 

534.  Stogursey 450 

535.  „          450 

536.  „          450 

537.  Heathery  Burn  Cave   .     .     .     .451 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132. 

538.  Kirby  Mooraide 452 

539.  Hove 452 

Sussex  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ix.  p.  120. 

540.  Harty 453 


ERRATA. 

Page  117,  under  fig.  123,  for  "  Crishall  "  read  "  Chrishall." 
143,  line  15,  for  "  Spain  "  read  "  Portugal." 
207,    .,    34,  for  "St.  Genoulph"  read  "St.  Genouph." 

16,  for  "St.  Julien  Chateuil"  read  "St.  Jullien,  Chapleuil.' 
3  from  bottom,  for  "  Staffordshire"  read  "Shropshire." 
4,  for  "  Suffolk"  read  "  Sussex." 


215, 
314, 
323, 


,     336,     „    20,  for  "Staffordshire"  read"  Shropshire." 

,     452,     ,,      4  from  bottom,  for  "  Staffordshire  "  read  "  Shropshire. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

HAVING  already  in  a  former  work  attempted  the  arrangement  and 
description  of  the  Ancient  Stone  Implements  and  Ornaments  of 
Great  Britain,  I  am  induced  to  undertake  a  similar  task  in  con- 
nection with  those  Bronze  Antiquities  which  belong  to  the  period 
when  Stone  was  gradually  falling  into  disuse  for  cutting  purposes, 
and  Iron  was  either  practically  unknown  in  this  country,  or  had 
been  but  partially  adopted  for  tools  and  weapons. 

The  duration  and  chronological  position  of  this  bronze-using 
period  will  have  to  be  discussed  hereafter,  but  I  must  at  the  outset 
reiterate  what  I  said  some  eight  or  ten  years  ago,  that  in  this 
country,  at  all  events,  it  is  impossible  to  fix  any  hard  and  fast 
limits  for  the  close  of  the  Stone  Period,  or  for  the  beginning  or 
end  of  the  Bronze  Period,  or  for  the  commencement  of  that  of 
Iron.  Though  the  succession  of  these  three  stages  of  civilisation 
may  here  be  regarded  as  certain,  the  transition  from  one  to  the 
other  in  a  country  of  such  an  extent  as  Britain — occupied,  more- 
over, as  it  probably  was,  by  several  tribes  of  different  descent, 
manners,  and  customs — must  have  required  a  long  course  of  years 
to  become  general ;  and  even  in  any  particular  district  the  change 
cannot  have  been  sudden. 

There  must  of  necessity  have  been  a  time  when  in  each  district 
the  new  phase  of  civilisation  was  being  introduced,  and  the  old 
conditions  had  not  been  entirely  changed.  So  that,  as  I  have  else- 
where pointed  out,  the  three  stages  of  progress  represented  by  the 
Stone,  Bronze,  and  Iron  Periods,  like  the  three  principal  colours  of 
the  rainbow,  overlap,  intermingle,  and  shade  off  the  one  into  the 
other,  though  their  succession,  so  far  as  Britain  and  Western 
Europe  are  concerned,  appears  to  be  equally  well  defined  with  that 
of  the  prismatic  colours. 


2  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

In  thus  speaking  of  a  bronze-using  period  I  by  no  means  wish 
to  exclude  the  possible  use  of  copper  unalloyed  with  tin.  There 
is  indeed  every  ground  for  believing  that  in  some  parts  of  the  world 
the  use  of  native  copper  must  have  continued  for  a  lengthened 
period  before  it  was  discovered  that  the  addition  of  a  small  pro- 
portion of  tin  not  only  rendered  it  more  readily  fusible,  but  added 
to  its  elasticity  and  hardness,  and  thus  made  it  more  serviceable 
for  tools  and  weapons.  Even  after  the  advantages  of  the  alloy 
over  the  purer  metal  were  known,  the  local  scarcity  of  tin  may  at 
times  have  caused  so  small  a  quantity  of  that  metal  to  be  employed, 
that  the  resulting  mixture  can  hardly  be  regarded  as  bronze ;  or 
at  times  this  dearth  may  have  necessitated  the  use  of  copper  alone, 
either  native  or  as  smelted  from  the  ore. 

Of  this  Copper  Age,  however,  there  are  in  Europe  but  extremely 
feeble  traces,  if  indeed  any  can  be  said  to  exist.  It  appears  not 
unlikely  that  the  views  which  are  held  by  many  archaeologists  as 
to  the  Asiatic  origin  of  bronze  may  prove  to  be  well  founded,  and 
that  when  the  use  of  copper  was  introduced  into  Europe,  the  dis- 
covery had  already  long  been  made  that  it  was  more  serviceable 
when  alloyed  with  tin  than  when  pure.  In  connection  with  this 
it  may  be  observed  that  the  most  important  discovery  of  instru- 
ments of  copper  as  yet  recorded  in  the  Old  World  is  that  which  was 
made  at  Gungeria  in  Central  India.*  They  consisted  of  flat  celts  of 
what  has  been  regarded  as  the  most  primitive  type ;  but  with  them 
were  found  some  ornaments  of  silver,  a  circumstance  which  seems 
to  militate  against  their  extreme  antiquity,  as  the  production 
silver  involves  a  considerable  amount  of  metallurgical  skill,  and 
probably  an  acquaintance  with  lead  and  other  metals.  However 
this  may  be,  there  are  reasons  for  supposing  that  if  a  Copper  Age 
existed  in  the  Old  World  its  home  was  in  Asia  or  the  most 
eastern  part  of  Europe,  and  not  in  any  western  country. 

The  most  instructive  instance  of  a  Copper  Age,  as  distinct  from 
one  of  Bronze,  is  that  afforded  by  certain  districts  of  North 
America,  in  which  we  find  good  evidence  of  a  period  when,  in 
addition  to  stone  as  a  material  from  which  tools  and  weapons  were 
made,  copper  also  was  employed,  and  used  in  its  pure  native  con- 
dition without  the  addition  of  any  alloy. 

The  State  of  Wisconsin!  alone  has  furnished  upwards  of  a 
hundred  axes,  spear-heads,  and  knives  formed  of  copper  ;  and,  to 
judge  from  some  extracts  from  the  writings  of  the  early  travellers 

*  Seepostea,  p.  40.  f  Butler,  "Prehist.  Wisconsin." 


A    COPPER   AGE    IN    AMERICA.  3 

given  by  the  Rev.  E.  F.  Slafter,*  that  part  of  America  would  seem 
to  have  entered  on  its  Copper  Age  long  before  it  was  first  brought 
into  contact  with  European  civilisation,  towards  the  middle  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  It  has  been  thought  by  several  American 
antiquaries  that  some  at  least  of  these  tools  and  weapons  were 
produced  by  the  process  of  casting,  though  the  preponderance  of 
opinion  seems  to  be  in  favour  of  all  of  them  being  shaped  by  the 
hammer  and  not  cast.  Among  others  I  may  mention  my  friend 
the  Hon.  Colonel  C.  C.  Jones,  who  has  examined  this  question  for 
me,  and  has  been  unable  to  discover  any  instance  of  one  of  these 
copper  tools  or  weapons  having  been  indisputably  cast. 

That  they  were  originally  wrought,  and  not  cast,  is  d  priori  in 
the  highest  degree  probable.  On  some  parts  of  the  shores  of 
Lake  Superior  native  copper  occurs  in  great  abundance,  and 
would  no  doubt  attract  the  attention  of  the  early  occupants  of 
the  country.  Accustomed  to  the  use  of  stone,  they  would  at  first 
regard  the  metal  as  merely  a  stone  of  peculiarly  heavy  nature, 
and  on  attempting  to  chip  it  or  work  it  into  shape  would  at  once 
discover  that  it  yielded  to  a  blow  instead  of  breaking,  and  that  in 
fact  it  was  a  malleable  stone.  Of  this  ductile  property  the 
North  American  savage  availed  himself  largely,  and  was  able  to 
produce  spear-heads  with  sockets  adapted  for  the  reception  of  their 
shafts  by  merely  hammering  out  the  base  of  the  spear-head  and 
turning  it  over  to  form  the  socket,  in  the  same  manner  as  is  so 
often  employed  in  the  making  of  iron  tools.  But  though  the 
great  majority  of  the  instruments  hitherto  found,  if  not  all,  have 
been  hammered  and  not  cast,  it  would  appear  that  the  process  of 
melting  copper  was  not  entirely  unknown.  Squier  and  Davis 
have  observed,!  "  that  the  metal  appears  to  have  been  worked  in 
all  cases  in  a  cold  state.  This  is  somewhat  remarkable,  as  the  fires 
upon  the  altars  were  sufficiently  strong  in  some  instances  to  melt 
down  the  copper  implements  and  ornaments  deposited  upon  them, 
and  the  fact  that  the  metal  is  fusible  could  hardly  have  escaped 
notice."  That  it  did  not  altogether  escape  observation  is  shown  by 
the  evidence  of  De  Champlain,+  the  founder  of  the  city  of  Quebec. 
In  1610  he  was  joining  a  party  of  Algonquins,  one  of  whom  met 
him  on  his  barque,  and  after  conversation  "  tira  d'un  sac  une 
piece  de  cuivre  de  la  longueur  d'un  pied  qu'il  me  donna,  le  quel 

*  "Preh.  Copper  Tmpl.,"  Boston,  1879. 
t  "  Anc.  Hon.  of  the  Missies.  Valley."  p.  202. 

t  "Les  Voyages  du  Sieur  de  Champlain,"  Paris,  1613,  pp.   246—7,  cited  by  Slafter, 
op.  cit.,  p.  13. 

B  2 


4  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

estoit  fort  beau  et  bien  franc,  me  donnant  a  entendre  qu'il  en  avoit 
en  quantit^  la  ou  il  1'avoit  pris,  qui  estoit  sur  le  bort  d'une  riviere 
proche  d'un  grand  lac  et  qu'ils  le  prenoient  par  morceaux,  et  le 
faisant  fondre  le  mettoient  en  lames,  et  avec  des  pierres  le  ren- 
doient  uny." 

We  have  here,  then,  evidence  of  a  Copper  Age,*  in  comparatively 
modern  times,  during  most  of  which  period  the  process  of  fusing 
the  metal  was  unknown.  In  course  of  time,  however,  this  art  was 
discovered,  and  had  not  European  influences  been  brought  to  bear 
upon  the  country  this  discovery  might,  as  in  other  parts  of  the 
world,  have  led  to  the  knowledge  of  other  fusible  metals,  and 
eventually  to  the  art  of  manufacturing  bronze- — an  alloy  already 
known  in  Mexico  and  Peru.f 

So  far  as  regards  the  Old  World  there  are  some  who  have  sup- 
posed that,  owing  to  iron  being  a  simple  and  not  a  compound 
metal  like  bronze,  and  owing  to  the  readiness  with  which  it  may 
be  produced  in  the  metallic  condition  from  some  of  its  ores,  iron 
must  have  been  in  use  before  copper.  Without  denying  the 
abstract  possibility  of  this  having  been  the  case  in  some  part  of  our 
globe,  I  think  it  will  be  found  that  among  the  nations  occupying 
the  shores  of  the  eastern  half  of  the  Mediterranean — a  part  of  the 
world  which  may  be  regarded  as  the  cradle  of  European  civilisation 
— not  only  are  all  archaeological  discoveries  in  favour  of  the  suc- 
cession of  iron  to  bronze,  but  even  historical  evidence  supports 
their  testimony. 

In  the  Introductory  Chapter  of  my  book  on  Ancient  Stone 
Implements  I  have  already  touched  upon  this  question,  on  which, 
however,  it  will  here  be  desirable  farther  to  enlarge. 

The  light  thrown  upon  the  subject  by  the  Hebrew  Scriptures  is 
but  small.  There  is,  however,  in  them  frequent  mention  of  most 
of  the  metals  now  in  ordinary  use.  But  the  word  nu?"n?,  which  in 
our  version  is  translated  brass — a  compound  of  copper  and  zinc — 
would  be  more  properly  translated  copper,  as  indeed  it  is  in  one 
instance,  though  there  it  would  seem  erroneously,  when  two  vessels 
of  fine  copper,  precious  as  gold,  are  mentioned.  J  In  some  passages, 
however,  it  would  appear  as  if  the  word  would  be  more  correctly 

*  For  notices  of  American  copper  instruments  see,  in  addition  to  the  works  already 
quoted,  Wilson,  "Prehist.  Man,"  vol.  i.  p.  205,  &c. ;  Lubbock,  "  Preh.  Times,"  p.  258, 
&c.  See  also  an  interesting  article  by  Dr.  Emil  Schmidt,  in  Arehiv.fiir  Anth.,  vol.  xi. 
p.  65. 

t  A  Peruvian  chisel  analyzed  by  Vauquelin  gave  -94  of  copper  and  '06  of  tin  (Moore's 
"  Anc.  Mineralogy,"  p.  42). 

%  Ezra,  ch.  viii.  v.  27. 


SCRIPTURAL   NOTICES    OF    BRONZE.  5 

rendered  bronze  than  copper,  as,  for  instance,  where  Moses*  is 
commanded  to  cast  five  sockets  of  brass  for  the  pillars  to  carry  the 
hangings  at  the  door  of  the  tabernacle,  which  could  hardly  have  been 
done  from  a  metal  so  difficult  to  cast  as  unalloyed  copper.  Indeed 
if  tin  were  known,  and  there  appears  little  doubt  that  the  word 
Vn5  represents  that  metal,  its  use  as  an  alloy  for  copper  can  hardly 
have  been  unknown.  It  may,  then,  be  regarded  as  an  accepted 
fact  that  at  the  time  when  the  earliest  books  of  the  Hebrew  Scrip- 
tures were  reduced  to  writing,  gold,t  silver,  iron,  tin,  lead,  and  brass, 
or  more  probably  bronze,  were  known.  To  what  date  this  reduc- 
tion to  writing  is  to  be  assigned  is  a  question  into  which  it  would 
be  somewhat  out  of  place  here  to  enter.  The  results,  however,  of 
modern  criticism  tend  to  prove  that  it  can  hardly  be  so  remote  as 
the  fourteenth  century  before  our  era. 

In  the  Book  of  Job,  as  to  the  date  of  which  also  there  is  some 
diversity  of  opinion,  we  find  evidence  of  a  considerable  acquaint- 
ance with  the  metals  :  "  Surely  there  is  a  vein  for  the  silver,  and 
a  place  for  gold  where  they  fine  it.  Iron  is  taken  out  of  the 
earth,  and  brass  is  molten  out  of  the  stone. "+  Lead  is  also  men- 
tioned, but  not  tin. 

Before  quitting  this  part  of  the  subject  I  ought  perhaps  to 
allude  to  the  passage  respecting  Tubal-Cain,  §  the  seventh  in  descent 
from  Adam,  who  is  mentioned  as  "  an  instructor  of  every  artificer  in 
brass  and  iron,"  or  a  furbisherll  of  every  cutting  instrument  in  those 
metals.  This  must,  however,  be  regarded  as  a  tradition  incor- 
porated in  the  narrative  at  the  time  it  was  written,  and  probably 
with  some  accessory  colouring  in  connection  with  the  name  which 
Gesenius  has  suggested  may  mean  scoriarum  faber,  a  maker  of 
dross,  and  which  others  have  connected  with  that  of  Vulcan. 
Sir  Gardner  WilkinsonH"  has  remarked  on  this  subject  that  what- 
ever may  have  been  the  case  in  earlier  times,  "  no  direct  mention 
is  made  of  iron  arms  or  tools  till  after  the  Exodus,"  and  that 
"  some  are  even  inclined  to  doubt  the  barzel  (bna),  of  the  Hebrews 
being  really  that  metal,"  iron. 

Movers**  has  observed  that  in  the  whole  Pentateuch  iron  is 
mentioned  only  thirteen  times,  while  bronze  appears  no  less  than 
forty-four,  which  he  considers  to  be  in  favour  of  the  later  intro- 
duction of  iron ;  as  also  the  fact  that  bronze,  and  not  iron, 

*  Exod.,  ch.  xxvi.  v.  37.  t  Numbers,  ch.  xxxi.  v.  22. 

%  Ch.  xxviii.  v.  1,  2.  §  Genesis,  ch.  iv.  v.  22. 

||  Smith's  "  Diet,  of  the  Bible,"  *.  v.  IF  "  Anc.  Egyptians,"  vol.  iii.  p. 
**  "Phonicier,"  ii.  3. 


6  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

was  associated  with  gold  and  silver  in  the  fittings  for  the 
Tabernacle. 

For  other  passages  in  Scripture  relative  to  the  employment  of 
brass  or  bronze,  and  iron,  among  the  Jews,  the  reader  may  consult 
an  excellent  article  by  the  Rev.  John  Hodgson  in  the  first  volume 
of  the  Archceologia  jfiliana  (1816),  "An  Inquiry  into  the  Era 
when  Brass  was  used  in  purposes  to  which  Iron  is  now  applied." 
From  this  paper  I  have  largely  borrowed  in  subsequent  pages. 

As  to  the  succession  of  the  two  metals,  bronze  and  iron,  among 
the  ancient  Egyptians,  there  is  a  considerable  diversity  of  opinion 
among  those  who  have  studied  the  subject.  Sir  Gardner  Wilkin- 
son,* judging  mainly  from  pictorial  representations,  thinks  that  the 
Egyptians  of  an  early  Pharaonic  age  were  acquainted  with  the  use 
of  iron,  and  accounts  for  the  extreme  rarity  of  actual  examples  by 
the  rapid  decomposition  of  the  metal  in  the  nitrous  soil  of  Egypt. 
M.  Chabas,f  the  author  of  a  valuable  and  interesting  work  upon 
primitive  history,  mainly  as  exhibited  by  Egyptian  monuments, 
believes  that  the  people  of  Egypt  were  acquainted  with  the  use  of 
iron  from  the  dawn  of  their  historic  period,  and  upwards  of  3000 
years  B.C.  made  use  of  it  for  all  the  purposes  to  which  we  now 
apply  it,  and  even  prescribed  its  oxide  as  a  medicinal  preparation. 
M.  Mariette,+  on  the  contrary,  whose  personal  explorations  entitle 
his  opinion  to  great  weight,  is  of  opinion  that  the  early  Egyptians 
never  really  made  use  of  iron,  and  seems  to  think  that  from  some 
mythological  cause  that  metal  was  regarded  as  the  bones  of  Typhon, 
and  was  the  object  of  a  certain  repugnance.  M.  Chabas  himself  is, 
indeed,  of  opinion  that  iron  was  used  with  extreme  reserve,  and,  so 
to  speak,  only  in  exceptional  cases.  This  he  considers  to  have  been 
partly  due  to  religious  motives,  and  partly  to  the  greater  abundance 
of  bronze,  which  the  Egyptians  well  knew  how  to  mix  so  as  to 
give  it  a  fine  temper.  From  whatever  cause,  the  discovery  of  iron 
or  steel  instruments  among  Egyptian  antiquities  is  of  extremely 
rare  occurrence  ;  and  there  are  hardly  any  to  which  a  date  can  be 
assigned  with  any  approach  to  certainty.  The  most  ancient 
appears  to  be  a  curved  scimitar-like  blade  discovered  by  Belzoni 
beneath  one  of  the  Sphinxes  of  Karnak,  and  now  in  the  British 

*  "  Anc.  Egyptians,"  vol.  iii.  pp.  246,  247.  See  also  "  The  Egyptians  in  the  Time  of 
the  Pharaohs,"  p.  99. 

t"  Etudes  sur  1'Antiquite  Historique  d'apres  les  sources  Egyptiennes,"  &c.,  1872, 
p.  69. 

J  "  Catalogue  de  Boulaq,"  pp.  247,  248 ;  Chahas,  p.  54.  See  also  Emil  Soldi, 
"  L'Art  Egyptien,"  1879,  p.  41. 


BRONZE  IN  ANCIENT  EGYPT.  7 

Museum.*  Its  date  is  stated  to  be  about  600  B.C. t  A  wedge  of 
iron  appears,  however,  to  have  been  found  in  a  joint  between  the 
stones  of  the  Great  Pyramid.  $ 

Without  in  any  way  disputing  the  occasional  use  of  iron  among 
the  ancient  Egyptians,  nor  the  interpretation  of  the  colours  red 
and  blue  on  the  tomb  of  Rameses  III.  as  being  intended  to  repre- 
sent blades  of  bronze  and  iron  or  steel  respectively,  I  may  venture 
to  suggest  that  the  round  blue  bar,§  against  which  butchers  are 
represented  as  sharpening  their  knives  in  some  of  the  pictures  in  the 
sepulchres  of  Thebes,  may  have  been  too  hastily  regarded  as  a  steel 
instead  of  as  a  whetstone  of  a  blue  colour.  The  existence  of  a 
steel  for  the  purpose  of  sharpening  seems  to  imply  not  only  the 
knowledge  of  the  preparation  of  the  metal  and  its  subsequent 
hardening,  but  also  of  files  or  of  other  tools  to  produce  the  peculiar 
striated  surface  to  which  the  sharpening  property  of  a  steel  is  due. 
Had  such  tools  been  known,  it  seems  almost  impossible  that  no 
trace  of  them  should  have  come  down  to  our  times.  Moreover,  if 
used  for  sharpening  bronze  knives,  a  steel  such  as  at  present 
used  would  sooner  become  clogged  and  unfit  for  use  than  if  em- 
ployed for  sharpening  steel  knives. 

Lepsius  II  has  observed  that  the  pictures  of  the  old  Empire  do 
not  afford  an  example  of  arms  painted  in  blue,  the  metal  of 
weapons  being  always  painted  in  red  or  bright  brown.  Iron  was 
but  little  used  under  the  old  Empire  ;  copper  was  employed  in  its 
stead  where  the  hardness  of  iron  was  not  indispensable. 

However  this  may  be,  it  seems  admitted  on  all  hands  that  the 
use  of  iron  in  Egypt  in  early  times  was  much  restricted,  probably 
from  some  religious  motive.  May  not  this  have  arisen  from  the 
first  iron  there  known  having  been,  as  it  appears  to  have  been  in 
some  other  countries,  of  meteoric  origin  ?  The  Coptic  name  for 
iron,  BG  Nine,  which  has  been  interpreted  by  Professor  LauthH  as 
"the  Stone  of  Heaven,"  strongly  favours  such  a  view.  The 
resemblance  of  this  term  to  BAA-N-HG,  the  baa  of  heaven,  or 
celestial  iron,  has  also  been  pointed  out  by  M.  Chabas,**  who,  how 
ever,  is  inclined  to  consider  that  steel  was  so  called  on  account  of 
its  reflecting  the  colour  of  the  sky.  If  the  iron  in  use  among  the 

*  Catal.,  No.  5410.  t  Day,  "  Preh.  Use  of  Iron  and  Steel,"  page  14. 

J  Day,  op.  cit.,  p.  32.  §  Wilkinson,  op.  cit.,  vol.  iii.  p.  247. 

||  "  Les  Metaux  dans  les  Inscrip.  Egypt.,"  1877,  p.  57. 

IT  "Zeitsch.  f.  ^Egypt.  Sprache,"  &c.,  1870,  p.  114. 

**  Op.  cit.,  p.  67.  Dr.  Birch  translates  ba  en  pe  "  heavenly  wood  "  or  "  stone  "  (Arch., 
vol.  xxxviii.  p.  377  ;  Hierog.  Diet.}.  See  also  a  paper  by  the  Eev.  Basil  Cooper  in 
Trans.  Devon.  Assoc.,  vol.  ii.  p.  386,  and  Day,  "  Preh.  Use  of  Iron  and  Steel,"  p.  41. 


8  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

early  Egyptians  were  meteoric,  and  its  celestial  origin  acknow- 
ledged, both  its  rarity  and  its  restricted  use  would  be  accounted 
for.  The  term  "  bone  of  Typhon,"  as  applied  to  iron,  is  given  by 
Plutarch  on  the  authority  of  Manetho,  who  wrote  in  the  days  of 
the  first  Ptolemy.  It  appears  to  be  used  only  in  contrast  to  the 
name  "  bone  of  Horus,"  which,  according  to  the  same  author,  was 
applied  to  the  loadstone,  and  it  seems  difficult  to  admit  any  great 
antiquity  for  the  appellation,  or  to  connect  it  with  a  period  when 
iron  was  at  all  rare,  or  its  use  restricted. 

Although  the  use  of  iron  in  Egypt  was  at  an  early  period  com- 
paratively unknown,  that  of  bronze  was  most  extensive.  The 
weapons  of  war,*  the  tools  for  various  trades,  including  those  of  the 
engraver  and  sculptor,  were  all  made  of  that  metal,  which  in  its 
crude  form  served  also  as  a  kind  of  circulating  medium.  It 
appears  to  have  been  mainly  imported  from  Asia,  some  of  the 
principal  sources  of  copper  being  in  the  peninsula  of  Sinai.  One 
of  the  chief  mines  was  situated  at  Sarbout-el-Khadem,  where 
both  turquoises  and  copper  ore  were  extracted,  and  the  latter 
smelted  at  Wady-Nash.  The  copper  mines  of  Wady-Magarah  are 
thought  to  have  been  worked  as  early  as  the  second  dynasty, 
upwards  of  3000  years  B.C.  ;  and  in  connection  with  ancient' 
Egyptian  mining,  it  is  worth  while  again  to  cite  Agatharchides,f 
whose  testimony  I  have  already  adduced  in  my  "  Ancient  Stone 
Implements,"  and  who  relates  that  in  his  time,  circa  B.C.  100, 
there  were  found  buried  in  some  ancient  gold-mines  in  Upper 
Egypt  the  bronze  chisels  or  wedges  (Xaro/xtBe?  ^aA/rat)  of  the  old 
miners,  and  who  accounts  for  their  being  of  that  metal  by  the  fact 
that  when  those  mines  were  wrought,  men  were  in  no  way  acquainted 
with  the  use  of  iron. 

In  the  seventh  century  B.C.,  however,  iron  must  have  been  in 
general  use  in  Egypt,  for  on  the  landing  of  the  Carians  and  lonians,  J 
who  were  armed  with  bronze,  an  Egyptian,  who  had  never  before 
seen  men  armed  with  that  metal,  ran  to  Psammetichus  to  inform 
him  that  brazen  men  had  risen  from  the  sea  and  were  wasting  the 
country.  As  Psammetichus  himself  is  described  as  wearing  a 
brazen  helmet,  the  arms  mentioned  would  seem  to  have  been 
offensive  rather  than  defensive. 

The  source  whence  the  tin,  which  formed  a  constituent  part  of 

*  Chabas,  op.  cit.,  p.  47.     Lepsiua,  op.  cit.,  p.  57. 
t  "  Photii  Bibliotheca,"  ed.  1653,  col.  1343. 
I  "  Herod.,"  lib.  ii.  c.  152. 


BRONZE    PRECEDED    IRON    IN    EGYPT. 

the  bronze,  was  derived,  is  much  more  uncertain.    Indeed,  to  judge 
from  M.  Chabas'  silence,  its  name  and  hieroglyphic  are  unknown, 
•>    though  from  some  of  the  uses  to  which  the  metal  designated  by 
Q   0°0  was  applied,  it  seems  possible  that  it  may  have  been  tin. 

On  the  whole,  to  judge  from  documentary  evidence  alone, 
the  question  as  to  the  successive  use  of  the  different  metals 
in  Egypt  seems  to  be  excessively  obscure,  some  of  them  being 
almost  impossible  to  identify  by  name  or  representative  sign. 
If,  however,  we  turn  to  the  actual  relics  of  the  past,  we  find 
bronze  tools  and  weapons  in  abundance,  while  those  of  iron  are 
extremely  scarce,  and  are  either  of  late  date  or  at  best  of  uncer- 
tain age.  So  strong,  indeed,  is  the  material  evidence,  that  the 
late  Mr.  Crawfurd,*  while  disputing  any  general  and  universal 
sequence  of  iron  to  bronze,  confesses  that  Ancient  Egypt  seems  to 
offer  a  case  in  which  a  Bronze  Age  clearly  preceded  an  Iron  one, 
or  at  least  in  which  cutting  instruments  of  bronze  preceded  those 
of  iron. 

Among  the  Assyrians  iron  seems  to  have  been  in  considerable 
use  at  an  early  date,  and  to  have  been  exported  from  that  country 
to  Egypt,  but  knives  and  long  chisels  or  hatchets  of  bronze  were 
among  the  objects  found  at  Tel  Sifr,  in  Southern  Babylonia.  The 
earliest  bronze  image  to  which  a  date  can  be  assigned  appears  to 
be  that  on  which  M.  Oppert  has  read  the  name  of  Koudourmapouk, 
King  of  the  Soumirs  and  Accads,t  who,  according  to  M.  Lenormant, 
lived  about  2100  B.C.  Dr.  S.  Birch  reads  the  name  as  Kudur- 
mabug  (about  2200  B.C.).  Others  in  the  British  Museum  are 
referred  to  Gudea,  who  reigned  about  1700  B.C. 

The  mythology  and  literature  of  ancient  Greece  and  Rome  are  so 
intimately  connected,  that  in  discussing  the  evidence  afforded  by 
classical  writers  it  will  be  needless  to  separate  them,  but  the 
testimony  of  both  Greek  and  Latin  authors  may  be  taken  indis- 
criminately, though,  of  course,  the  former  afford  the  more  ancient 
evidence.  I  have  already  cited  much  of  this  evidence  in  the 
Introductory  Chapter  of  my  book  on  Ancient  Stone  Implements, 
mainly  with  the  view  of  showing  the  succession  of  bronze  to  stone ; 
on  the  present  occasion  I  have  to  re-adduce  it,  together  with  what 
corroborative  testimony  I  am  able  to  procure,  in  order  to  show 
that,  along  the  northern  shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  philology  and 
history  agree  as  to  the  priority  of  the  use  of  bronze  for  cutting 
instruments  to  that  of  iron. 

*  Trans.  Ethnol.  Soc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  5.  t  Soldi,  "  L'Art  Egypt.,"  p.  25. 


10  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.   I. 

The  Greek  language  itself  bears  witness  to  this  fact,  for  the 
words  significant  of  working  in  iron  are  not  derived  from  the  name 
of  that  metal,  but  from  that  of  bronze,  and  the  old  forms  of  ^a\Kev^ 
and  ^aXKeveiv  remained  in  use  in  connection  with  the  smith  and 
his  work  long  after  the  blacksmith  had  to  a  great  extent  super- 
seded the  bronze-founder  and  the  copper-smith  in  the  fabrication 
of  arms  and  cutlery.*  An  analogous  transition  in  the  meaning  of 
words  has  been  pointed  out  by  Professor  Max  Miiller.  "  The 
Mexicans  called  their  own  copper  or  bronze  tepuztli,  which  is  said 
to  have  meant  originally  hatchet.  The  same  word  is  now  used  for 
iron,  with  which  the  Mexicans  first  became  acquainted  through 
their  intercourse  with  the  Spaniards.  Tepuztli  then  became  a 
general  name  for  metal,  and  when  copper  had  to  be  distinguished 
from  iron,  the  former  was  called  red,  the  latter  black  tepuztli."  t  I 
am  not  certain  whether  Professor  Max  Miiller  still  retains  the  views 
which  he  expressed  in  1864.  He  then  pointed  out*  that  "what 
makes  it  likely  that  iron  was  not  known  previous  to  the  separation 
of  the  Aryan  nations  is  the  fact  that  its  names  vary  in  every  one 
of  their  languages."  But  there  is  a  "  name  for  copper,  which  is 
shared  in  common  by  Latin  and  the  Teutonic  languages,  ces,  cerig, 
Gothic  ais,  Old  High  German  er,  Modern  .German  Er-z,  Anglo- 
Saxon  dr,  English  ore.  Like  chalkos,  which  originally  meant 
copper,  but  came  to  mean  metal  in  general,  bronze  or  brass,  the 
Latin  ces,  too,  changed  from  the  former  to  the  latter  meaning ;  and 
we  can  watch  the  same  transition  in  the  corresponding  words  of 
the  Teutonic  languages.  .  ...  .  It  is  all  the  more  curious,  there- 
fore, that  the  Sanskrit  ayas,  which  is  the  same  word  as  aes  and 
aiz,  should  in  Sanskrit  have  assumed  the  almost  exclusive  mean- 
ing of  iron.  I  suspect,  however,  that  in  Sanskrit,  too,  ayas  meant 
originally  the  metal,  i.e.  copper,  and  that  as  iron  took  the  place  of 

copper,  the  meaning  of  ayas  was  changed  and  specified 

In  German,  too,  the  name  for  iron  was  derived  from  the  older 
name  of  copper.  The  Gothic  eisarn,  iron,  is  considered  by  Grimm 
as  a  derivative  form  of  aiz,  and  the  same  scholar  concludes  from 
this  that  'in  Germany  bronze  must  have  been  in  use  before  iron.'" 

But  to  return  to  Greece.  It  is,  of  course,  somewhat  doubtful  how 
far  the  word  ^oX/ro?,  as  used  by  the  earliest  Greek  authors,  was 


*  XaXicevtiv  Sk  cat  TO  fftlriptvttv  tXtyov,  Kal  xa\Kids,  roi>£  rbv  aiSrjpov  epya£o/«vouc 
(Julius  Pollux,  "  Onomasticon,"  lib.  vii.  cap.  24). 

t  "  Lectures  on  the  Science  of  Language,"  2nd  S.,  1864,  p.  229  ;  Tylor's  "  Anahuac," 
1861,  p.  140. 

J  "Lectures  on  the  Science  of  Language,"  2nd  S.,  p.  231. 


BRONZE    IN   ANCIENT   GREECE.  11 

intended  to  apply  to  unalloyed  copper,  or  to  that  mixture  of 
copper  and  tin  which  we  now  know  as  bronze.  Mr.  Gladstone,* 
who  on  all  questions  relating  to  Homer  ought  to  be  one  of  the 
best  living  authorities,  regards  the  word  as  meaning  copper  : 
firstly,  because  it  is  always  spoken  of  by  Homer  as  a  pure  metal 
along  with  other  pure  metals  ;  secondly,  on  account  of  the 
epithets  epvOpos,  ^]vo^,  and  vcopoTJr,  which  mean  red,  bright,  and 
gleaming,  being  applied  to  it,  and  which  Mr.  Gladstone  considers 
to  be  inapplicable  to  bronze  ;  and  thirdly,  because  Homer  does  not 
appear  to  have  known  anything  at  all  of  the  fusion  or  alloying  of 
metals.  The  second  reason  he  considers  further  strengthened  by 
the  probability  that  Homer  would  not  represent  the  walls  of  the 
palace  of  Alcinous  as  plated  with  bronze,  nor  introduce  a  heaven 
of  bronze  among  the  imposing  imagery  of  battle  (II.,  xvii.  424). 
On  the  whole  he  concludes  that  ^aA/ro?  was  copper  hardened  by 
some  method,  as  some  think  by  the  agency  of  water,  or  else  and 
more  probably  according  to  a  very  simple  process,  by  cooling 
slowly  in  the  air.f 

I  regret  to  say  that  these  conclusions  appear  to  me  to  be  founded 
to  some  extent  on  false  premises  and  on  more  than  one  misconcep- 
tion. The  process  of  heating  copper  and  then  dipping  it  in  water  or 
allowing  it  slowly  to  cool,  so  far  from  being  adapted  for  hardening 
that  metal,  is  that  which  is  usually  adopted  for  annealing  or 
softening  it.  While  the  plunging  into  cold  water  of  steel  at  a  red 
heat  has  the  effect  of  rendering  that  metal  intensely  hard,  on 
copper  the  reverse  is  the  result  ;  and,  as  Dr.  Percy  has  observed,? 
it  is  immaterial  whether  the  cooling  after  annealing  —  or  restoring 
its  malleability  by  means  of  heat  —  takes  place  slowly  or  rapidly. 
Indeed,  one  alloy  of  copper  and  tin  is  rendered  most  malleable 
by  rapid  cooling. 

It  has  been  stated!  that  bronze  of  the  ancient  composition  may 
by  cooling  it  slowly  be  rendered  as  hard  as  steel,  and  at  the  same 
time  less  brittle,  but  this  statement  seems  to  require  confirmation. 

According  to  some  II  the  impossibility  of  hardening  bronze  like 
steel  by  dipping  it  into  water  had  passed  into  a  proverb  so  early 
as  the  days  of  J^schylus,  but  "  ^O\KOV  jScu^a?  "  has  by  others  been 


*  "  Studies  on  Homer  and  the  Homeric  Age,"  vol.  iii.  pp.  498,  499. 

t  The  reference  is  to  Millin,  "  Mineralogie  Homerique,"  pp.  126,  132. 

J  "  Metallurgy  —  Fuel,  Fireclays,  Copper,"  &c.,  p.  6. 

§  Moore,  "Anc.  Mineralogy,"  p.  57. 

||  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  97  ;  -&sch.  Agamem.,  v.  612.  Professor  Eolleston 
is  inclined  to  refer  the  expression  to  the  "tempering"  of  bronze  (Trans.  Brist.  and 
Glow.  Arch.  Soc.,  1878). 


12  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

regarded  as  referring  to  the  impossibility  of  dyeing  metal.*  Some 
of  the  commentators  on  Hesiod  and  Homer  speak,  however,  dis- 
tinctly as  to  a  process  of  hardening  bronze  by  a  dipping  or  /3a^»}, 
and  Virgil  t  represents  the  Cyclopes  as  dipping  the  hissing  bronze 
in  water — 

"  Alii  stridentia  tingiint 
^Era  lacu  " — 

but  the  idea  of  bronze  being  hardened  or  tempered  by  this  process 
appears  to  me  to  have  been  based  on  a  false  analogy  between  this 
metal  and  steel,  or  even  iron.  The  French  chemist,  Geoffrey, 
thought  he  had  succeeded  in  imitating  the  temper  of  an  ancient 
bronze  sword,  but  no  details  are  given  as  to  whether  he  added 
more  than  the  usual  proportion  of  tin  to  his  copper,  or  whether 
he  hardened  the  edge  with  a  hammer. 

With  regard  to  the  other  reasons  adduced  by  Mr.  Gladstone, 
it  is  no  doubt  true  that  ^aXifo^  is  occasionally  spoken  of  by  Homer 
as  a  pure  metal,  mainly,  however,  it  may  be  argued,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  same  name  being  applied  to  both  copper  and  bronze, 
if  not,  indeed,  like  the  Latin  "  ses,"  to  copper,  bronze,  and  brass. 
We  find,  moreover,  that  tin,  for  thus  we  must  translate  Kaaairepos, 
is  mentioned  by  Homer  ;  and  as  this  metal  appears  in  ancient 
times  to  have  been  mainly,  though  not  exclusively,  employed  for 
the  purpose  of  alloying  copper,  we  must  from  this  fact  infer  that 
the  use  of  bronze  was  not  unknown.  In  the  celebrated  descrip- 
tion of  the  fashioning  of  the  shield  of  Achilles  by  Vulcan — which 
may  for  the  moment  be  assumed  to  be  of  the  same  age  as  the 
rest  of  the  Iliad — we  find  the  copper  and  tin  mentioned  in  juxta- 
position with  each  other  ;  and  if  it  had  been  intended  to  represent 
Hephaistos  as  engaged  in  mixing  and  melting  bronze,  the  descrip- 
tion could  not  have  been  more  complete.  + 

XaX/cov  S'tV  irvpl  fiaXXev  dreipea,  Kacrcrirepdv  re. 

Even  the  term  indomitable  may  refer  to  the  difficulty  of  melting 
copper  in  its  unalloyed  condition. 

But  tin  was  also  used  in  the  pure  condition.  In  the  breast- 
plate of  Agamemnon  §  there  were  ten  bands  of  black  KVCLVOS, 
twelve  of  gold,  and  twenty  of  tin.  In  his  shield  II  were  twenty 
bosses  of  tin.  The  cows  5!  on  the  shield  of  Achilles  were 

"  Les  Metaux  dans  1'Ant.,"  p.  238.  t  "  2En.,"  viii.  450. 

§  xi.  24.  ||  xi.  34.  IT  xviii.  574. 


METALS   MENTIONED    BY    HOMER.  13 

made  of  both  gold  and  tin,  and  his  greaves*  of  soft  tin,  and 
the  border  of  the  breast-plate  of  Asteropaeus  t  was  formed  of 
glittering  tin. 

This  collocation  of  various  metals,  or  inlaying  them  by  way  of 
ornament,  calls  to  mind  some  of  the  pottery  and  bronze  pins  of 
the  Swiss  Lake  dwellings,  which  are  decorated  with  inlaid  tin, 
and  the  remarkable  bronze  bracelet  found  at  Mcerigen,+  which  is 
inlaid  with  iron  and  a  yellow  brass  by  way  of  ornament. 

With  regard  to  the  epithets  red,  bright,  and  gleaming,  they  are 
perfectly  applicable  to  bronze  in  its  polished  condition,  though 
they  ill  assort  with  the  popular  idea  of  bronze,  which  usually 
assigns  to  that  metal  the  brown  or  greenish  hues  it  acquires  by 
oxidation  and  exposure  to  atmospheric  influences.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  the  red  colour  §  of  copper,  though  certainly  rendered  more 
yellow,  is  not  greatly  impaired  by  an  admixture  of  tin  within  the 
proportions  now  used  by  engineers,  viz.  up  to  about  two  and  a 
half  ounces  to  the  pound,  or  about  1 5  per  cent.  As  to  the  bright 
and  shining  properties  of  the  metal,  Virgil,  when  no  doubt  speak- 
ing of  bronze  swords  and  shields,  makes  special  mention  of  their 
glitter —  II 

"  ^Eratseque  micant  peltse,  micat  sereus  ensis." 

Indeed,  the  mere  fact  of  the  swords  of  Homer  being  made  of 
^a\/ro9  is  in  favour  of  that  metal  being  bronze,  as  pure  copper 
would  be  singularly  inapplicable  to  such  a  purpose,  and  certainly 
no  copper  sword  would  break  into  three  or  four  pieces  at  a  blow 
instead  of  being  merely  bent.^f 

The  bending  of  the  points  of  the  spear-heads  against  the  shields 
of  the  adversaries  is,  however,  in  favour  of  these  weapons  having 
been  of  copper  rather  than  of  bronze.** 

As  to  Homer  having  been  unacquainted  with  the  fusion  or 
alloying  of  metals,  it  may  fairly  be  urged  that  without  such  know- 
ledge it  would  have  been  impossible  to  work  so  freely  as  he  has 
described,  in  gold,  silver,  and  tin  ;  and  that  the  only  reason  for 
which  Vulcan  could  have  thrown  the  latter  metal  into  the  fire 
must  have  been  in  order  to  melt  it. 

*  "  11.,"  xviii.  612. 

t  xxiii.  561.  For  these  and  other  instances  see  Prof.  Phillips  in  the  Arch.  Jouri?., 
vol.  xvi.  p.  10. 

J  Desor  et  Favre, "  Bel  Age  du  Bronze,"  p.  16. 

§  Holtzapffel,  "Turning  and  Mechanical  Manipulation,"  vol.  i.  p.  271. 
||  "Mneid,"  vii.  743.  f  "  Iliad,"  iii.  363. 

**<(Il.,"iii.  348,  vii.  259. 


14  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.   I. 

Whether  steel  was  designated  by  the  term  KVO.VOS  is  a  matter  of 
considerable  doubt,  and  certainly  in  later  times  that  word  was 
applied  to  a  substance  occasionally  used  as  a  blue  pigment,  not 
improbably  a  dark  blue  carbonate  of  copper.  Assuming  the  word 
to  mean  a  metal,  the  difficulty  in  regarding  it  as  significant  of  steel 
appears  in  a  great  measure  due  to  the  colour  implied  by  the 
adjective  form  k-vdveos,  being  a  dark  blue.*  If,  however,  it  were  the 
custom  even  in  those  days  to  colour  steel  blue  by  exposing  it, 
after  it  had  been  polished,  to  a  certain  degree  of  heat — as  is  usually 
done  with  watch  and  clock  springs  at  the  present  day — the  deep 
blue  colour  of  the  sky  or  sea  might  well  receive  such  an  epithet. 
That  steel  of  some  kind  was  known  in  Homeric  days  is  abundantly 
evident  from  the  process  of  hardening  an  axe  by  dipping  it  in 
cold  water  while  heated,  which  is  so  graphically  described  in  the 
Odyssey. 

If  KVCLVOS  be  really  steel,  we  can  also  understand  the  epithet 
black  t  being  occasionally  applied  to  it,  even  though  the  adjective 
derived  from  it  had  the  signification  of  blue. 

According  to  the  Arundelian  Marbles,  iron  was  discovered  B.C. 
1432, J  or  248  years  before  the  taking  of  Troy,  but  though  we 
have  occasional  mention  of  this  metal  and  of  steel  in  the  Homeric 
poems,  yet  weapons  and  tools  of  bronze  are  far  more  commonly 
mentioned  and  described.  Trees,  for  instance,  are  cut  down  and 
wood  carved  with  tools  of  bronze  ;  and  the  battle-axe  of  Menelaus§ 
is  of  excellent  bronze  with  an  olive-wood  handle,  long  and  well 
polished. 

Before  noticing  further  the  early  use  of  iron  in  Greece,  it  will  be 
well  to  see  what  other  authors  than  Homer  say  as  to  the  origin 
and  ancient  use  of  bronze  in  that  country. 

The  name  of  the  principal  metal  of  which  it  is  composed,  copper, 
bears  witness  to  one  of  the  chief  sources  of  its  supply  having  been 
the  island  of  Cyprus.  It  would  appear  that  Tamassus  in  this 
island  was  in  ancient  times  a  noted  mart  for  this  metal,  as  it  is 
according  to  Nitzsch  and  other  critics  the  Temese  II  mentioned  in 
Homer  as  being  resorted  to  in  order  to  exchange  iron  for  ^O\KO^, 
which  in  this  as  well  as  some  other  passages  seems  to  stand  for 
copper  and  not  bronze. 

The  advantage  arising  from  mixing  a  proportion  of  tin  with  the 

*  M.  Ch.  Houssel  in  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  98.  t  "  II.,"  xi.  24. 

£  Arch,  fur  Anthrop.,  vol.  viii.  p.  295 ;   Miiller,  "  Fragm.  Hist.   Graec.,"  vol.  i. 
p.  549. 

§  "II.,"  xiii.  612.  ||  "  Odyss.,"  i.  v.  184. 


IRON    IN    ANCIENT   GREECE.  15 

copper,  and  thus  rendering  it  at  the  same  time  more  fusible  and 
harder,  must  have  been  known  before  the  dawn  of  Grecian  history. 

The  accounts  given  by  early  Greek  writers  as  to  the  first 
discoverer  of  the  art  of  making  bronze  by  an  admixture  of  copper 
and  tin  vary  considerably,  and  thus  prove  that  even  in  the  days 
when  these  notices  were  written  the  art  was  of  ancient  date. 

Theophrastus  makes  Delas,  a  Phrygian,  whom  Aristotle  *  regards 
as  a  Lydian,  to  have  been  the  inventor  of  bronze.  Pausanias  t 
ascribes  the  honour  of  first  casting  statues  in  bronze  to  Rhoecus 
and  Theodorus  the  Samians,  who  appear  to  have  lived  about 
640  B.C.  They  are  also  said  to  have  improved  the  accuracy  of 
casting,  but  no  doubt  the  process  on  a  smaller  scale  was  practised 
long  before  their  time.  Ehoecus  and  his  colleague  are  also 
reported  to  have  discovered  the  art  of  casting  iron,?  but  no  really 
ancient  objects  of  cast  iron  have  as  yet  been  discovered. 

The  invention  of  the  metals  gold,  silver,  and  copper  is  also 
ascribed  to  the  Idsean  DactyliJ  or  the  Telchines,  who  made  the 
sickle  of  Chronos  1 1  and  the  trident  of  Poseidon.^] 

Though,  as  has  already  been  observed,  iron  and  even  steel  were 
not  unknown  in  the  days  of  Homer,  both  seem  to  have  been  of 
considerable  rarity,  and  it  is  by  no  means  improbable  that,  as 
appears  to  have  been  the  case  with  the  Egyptians,  the  first  iron 
used  by  the  Greeks  was  of  meteoric  origin.  I  have  elsewhere  ** 
called  attention  to  the  possible  connection  of  the  Greek  name 
for  iron  (atfypos')  with  currrip,  often  applied  to  a  shooting-star  or 
meteor,  and  with  the  Latin  Sidera  and  the  English  Star,  though 
it  is  unsafe  to  insist  too  much  on  mere  verbal  similarity.  In  an 
interesting  article  on  the  use  of  meteoric  iron  by  Dr.  L.  Beck, ft  of 
Biebrich  on  the  Rhine,  the  suggestion  is  made  that  the  final  typos 
of  ff/8r/j009  is  a  form  of  the  Aryan  ais  (conf.  ces,  ceris).  Dr.  Beck, 
however,  inclines  to  the  opinion  that  the  recognition  of  certain 
meteorites  as  iron  was  first  made  at  a  time  subsequent  to  the  dis- 
covery of  the  means  of  smelting  iron  from  its  ore. 

The  self-fused  mass  or  disc  of  iron,++  <r6\ov  avToyowvov,  which 
formed  one  of  the  prizes  at  the  funeral  games  of  Patroclns,  may 
possibly  have  been  meteoric,  but  this  is  very  doubtful,  as  the 
forging  of  iron,  and  the  trouble  and  care  it  involved,  were  well 

*  Plin.  "  Hist.  Nat.,"  lib.  vii.  c.  Ivi.  6.  t  Lib.  viii.  c.  14,  §  5. 

I  Op.  cit.,  lib.  iii.  c.  12,  §  8.  §  Diodorus  Siculus,  lib.  v.  c.  64. 

||  Strabo,  "  Geog.,"  lib.  xiv.  p.  935,  ed.  1807. 

U  Callimachus,  "Hymn,  in  Del.,"  1.  31.  **  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  5. 

ft  Archiv  fur  Anthrop.,  1S80,  vol.  xii.  p.  293.  }£  "  Iliad,"  lib.  xxiii.  v.  826. 


16  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 


known  in  those  days,  as  is  evident  from  the  epithet 
often  bestowed  upon  that  metal. 

For  a  considerable  time  after  the  Homeric  period  bronze  re- 
mained in  use  for  offensive  weapons,  especially  for  those  intended 
for  piercing  rather  than  cutting,  such  as  spears,  lances,  and  arrows, 
as  well  as  for  those  which  were  merely  defensive,  such  as  shields, 
cuirasses,  helmets,  and  greaves.  Even  swords  were  also  some- 
times of  bronze,  or  at  all  events  the  tradition  of  their  use  was  pre- 
served by  the  poets.  Thus  we  find  Euripides  *  speaking  of  the 
bronze-speared  Trojans,  ^a\Key)^eiav  Tpwwv,  and  Virgil  t  describ- 
ing the  glitter  of  the  bronze  swords  of  some  of  the  host  of 
Turnus. 

Probably,  however,  the  use  of  the  word  XO\KOS  was  not  restricted 
to  copper  or  bronze,  but  also  came  in  time  to  mean  metal  in 
general,  and  thus  extended  to  iron,  a  worker  in  which  metal  was, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  termed  a  xciXxevs. 

The  succession  of  iron  to  bronze  is  fully  recognised  by  both 
Greek  and  Latin  authors.  The  passage  in  Hesiod,  +  where  he 
speaks  of  the  third  generation  of  men  who  had  arms  of  bronze 
and  houses  of  bronze,  who  ploughed  with  bronze,  for  the  black  iron 
did  not  exist,  is  already  hackneyed  ;  nor  is  the  record  of  Lucre- 
tius §  less  well  known  :  — 

"  Anna  antiqua,  manus,  ungues,  dentesque  fuerunt, 
Et  lapides,  et  item  sylvarum  fragmina  rami,  .  .  . 
Posterius  ferri  vis  est,  serisque  reperta, 
Sed  prior  seris  erat  quam  ferri  cognitus  usus  ;  .  .  . 
Inde  minutatim  processit  f  erreus  ensis, 
Versaque  in  opprobrium  species  est  falcis  ahenee, 
Et  ferro  coepere  solum  proscindere  teroe." 

The  difference  between  the  age  of  Homer  and  Hesiod  in 
respect  to  the  use  of  metals  is  well  described  by  Mr.  Gladstone. 
The  former  |j  "  lived  at  a  time  when  the  use  of  iron  (in  Greece) 
was  just  commencing,  when  the  commodity  was  rare,  and  when 
its  value  was  very  great  ;  "  but  in  the  days  of  Hesiod  "  iron,  as 
compared  with  copper,  had  come  to  be  the  inferior,  that  is  to  say 
the  cheaper  metal,"  and  the  poet  "  looks  back  from  his  iron  age 
with  an  admiring  envy  on  the  heroic  period." 

*  "Troad.,"  143.    ^  f  «  Mv..,"  lib.  vii.  743. 

J  "Op.  et  D.,"  i.  150.  Tote  $'  r\v  \a\eta  p'tv  rtv\ta  XO\KIOI  Ss  Tt  OIKOI 
XaXey  $'  iipyd£o»ro,  fiiXag  $'  &VK  ta\i  aiSrjpof. 
§  Lib.  v.  1282,  et  seqq*  \\  "  Juv.  Mundi,"  1869,  p.  26. 


BRONZE    AMONG    OTHER   NATIONS.  17 

Hesiod  gives  to  Hercules*  a  helmet  of  steel  and  a  sword  of 
iron,  and  to  Saturn  t  a  steel  reaping-hook.  His  remark  that  at 
the  feast  of  the  gods  the  withered  +  part  of  a  five-fingered  branch 
should  never  be  cut  from  the  green  part  by  black  iron,  shows  that 
this  metal  was  in  common  use,  and  that  for  religious  ceremonies 
the  older  metal  bronze  retained  its  place. 

Bronze  was,  however,  a  favourite  metal  with  the  poet,  if  not 
indeed  in  actual  use  long  after  iron  was  known, §  for  Pindar,  about 
B.C.  470,  still  frequently  cites  spears  and  axes  made  of  bronze. 

By  the  time  of  Herodotus,  who  wrote  before  400  B.C.,  the  use 
of  iron  and  steel  was  universal  among  the  Greeks.  He  instances, 
as  a  fact  worth  recording,  that  the  Massagetre,  I!  a  powerful  tribe 
which  occupied  the  steppes  on  the  east  of  the  Caspian,  made  no 
use  of  iron  or  silver,  but  had  an  abundance  of  yaXicos  and  gold, 
pointing  their  spears  and  arrows  and  forming  the  heads  of  their 
battle-axes  with  the  former  metal.  Among  the  ^Ethiopians,H  on 
the  contrary,  he  states  that  bronze  was  rarer  and  more  precious 
than  gold  ;  nor  was  it  in  use  among  the  Scythians.**  The  Sagartii  ft 
in  the  army  of  Xerxes  are  mentioned  as  not  carrying  arms  either 
of  bronze  or  iron  except  daggers,  as  if  bronze  were  still  of  not 
unfrequent  use. 

Strabo,++  at  a  much  later  date,  thinks  it  worth  while  to  record 
that  among  the  Lusitanians  the  spears  were  tipped  with  bronze. 

But  certainly  some  centuries  before  the  time  of  Herodotus,  and 
probably  as  early  as  that  of  Hoiner,  the  Chalybes  on  the  shores  of 
the  Euxine  practised  the  manufacture  of  iron  on  a  considerable  scale, 
and  from  them  came  the  Greek  name  for  steel,  ^a\i»-^-.§§  Da'imachus, 
in  the  fourth  century  B.C.,  records  that  different  sorts  of  steel  are 
produced  among  the  Chalybes  in  Sinope,  Lydia,  and  Laconia.  That 
of  Sinope  was  used  for  smiths'  and  carpenters'  tools ;  that  of  Laconia 
for  files,  drills  for  iron,  stamps,  and  masons'  tools ;  and  the  Lydian 
kind  for  files,  swords,  razors,  and  knives.  In  Laconia  iron  is  said 
to  have  formed  the  only  currency  in  the  days  of  Lycurgus. 

Taking  all  the  evidence  into  consideration,  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  iron  must  have  been  known  in  Greece  some  ten  or 
twelve  centuries  before  our  era,  though,  as  already  observed,  it 
was  at  that  time  an  extremely  rare  metal.  It  also  appears  that  as 

*  "  Scut.  Hercul.,"  v.  122—138.         f  "  Theogon.,"  v.  161. 

i  "  Op.  et  D.,"  v.  741.  §  "  Olymp.,"  od.  i.  123 ;  "  Nem.,"  od.  x.  1 13,  &c. 

||  Lib.  i.  c.  215.  IT  Lib.  iii.  c.  23. 

**  Lib.  iv.  c.  71.  ft  Lib.  vii.  c.  85.  JJ  Lib.  iii.  p.  208,  ed.  1707. 

§§  Bochart's  "Phaleg.,"  <p.  208,  cited  in  Arch.  ^Eliana,  vol.  i.  p.  52. 

C 


18  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.   I. 

early  as  B.C.  500,  or  even  600,  iron  or  steel  was  in  common  use, 
though  bronze  had  not  been  altogether  superseded  for  offensive 
arms  such  as  spear-heads  and  battle-axes. 

The  tradition  of  the  earlier  use  of  bronze  still,  however,  remained 
even  in  later  times,  and  the  preference  shown  for  its  employment 
in  religious  rites,  which  I  have  mentioned  elsewhere,*  is  a  strong 
witness  of  this  earlier  use.  It  seems  needless  again  to  do  more 
than  mention  the  bronze  ploughshare  used  at  the  foundation  of 
Tuscan  cities,  the  bronze  knives  and  shears  of  the  Sabine  and 
Koman  priests,  and  the  bronze  sickles  of  Medea  and  Elissa.  I 
must,  however,  again  bring  forward  the  speculations  of  an  intel- 
ligent Greek  traveller,  who  wrote  in  the  latter  half  of  the  second 
century  of  our  era,  as  to  the  existence  of  what  we  should  now 
term  a  Bronze  Age  in  Greece. 

Pausanias  t  relates  how  Lichas  the  Lacedaemonian,  in  the  fifth 
century  B.C.,  discovered  the  bones  of  Orestes,  which  his  country- 
men had  been  commanded  by  an  oracle  to  seek.  The  Pythia  + 
had  described  the  place  as  one  where  two  strong  winds  met,  where 
form  was  opposed  to  form,  and  one  evil  lay  upon  another.  These 
Lichas  recognised  in  the  two  bellows  of  the  smith,  the  hammer 
opposed  to  the  anvil,  and  the  iron  lying  on  it.  Pausauias  on  this 
observes  that  at  that  time  they  had  already  begun  to  use  iron  in 
war,  and  that  if  it  had  been  in  the  days  of  the  heroes  it  would 
have  been  bronze  and  not  iron  designated  by  the  oracle  as  the 
evil,  for  in  their  days  all  arms  were  of  bronze.  For  this  he  cites 
Homer  as  his  authority,  who  speaks  of  the  bronze  axe  of  Pisander, 
and  the  arrow  of  Meriones.  A  further  argument  he  derives  from 
the  spear  of  Achilles,  laid  up  in  the  temple  of  Minerva  at  Phaselis, 
and  the  sword  of  Memnon  in  that  of  ^Esculapius  at  Nicomedia, 
which  is  entirely  of  bronze,  while  the  ferrule  and  point  of  his 
spear  are  also  of  that  metal. 

The  spear-head  which  lay  with  the  bones  of  Theseus  §  in  the 
Isle  of  Scyros  was  also  of  bronze,  and  probably  the  sword  like- 
wise. There  are  no  works  of  Latin  authors  of  a  date  nearly  so 
remote  as  that  of  the  earlier  Greek  writers,  and  long  before  the 
days  of  Ennius,  iron  was  in  general  use  in  Italy.  If  the  Articles 
of  Peace  which  "  Porsena,  King  of  the  Tuscans,  tendered  unto  the 
people  of  Rome "  were  as  Pliny  ||  represents  them,  the  Romans 

*  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  4.  t  "  Lacon.,"  lib.  iii  cap.  iii. 

*  Herod.,  lib.  i.  c.  67.  §  Plutarch.  "  Thes.,"  p.  17,  c.     Ed.  1624. 
y  "Nat.  Hiflt.,"  lib.  xxxiv.  cap.  14. 


USE    OF    IRON    IN    GAUL    AND    ITALY.  19 

must  even  in  those  early  days  have  had  iron  weapons,  for  they 
were  forbidden  the  use  of  that  metal  except  for  tilling  the  ground. 
In  B.C.  224  the  Isumbrian  Gauls  who  fought  with  Flarninius 
were  already  in  possession  of  iron  swords,  the  softness  and  flexi- 
bility of  which  led  to  the  discomfiture  of  their  owners.  The 
Romans  themselves  seem  but  to  have  been  badly  armed  so  far  as 
swords  were  concerned  until  the  time  of  the  Second  Punic  War, 
about  B.C.  200,  when  they  adopted  the  Spanish  sword,  and  learnt 
the  method  of  preparing  it.  Whether  the  modern  Toledo  and 
Bilbao  blades  are  legitimate  descendants  of  these  old  weapons  we 
need  not  stop  to  inquire.  In  whatever  manner  the  metal  was  pre- 
pared, so  thoroughly  was  iron  identified  with  the  sword  in  classical 
times  that  ferrum  and  gladius  were  almost  synonyms. 

Pliny  mentions  that  the  best  steel  used  in  Rome  was  imported 
from  China,  a  country  in  which  copper  or  bronze  swords  are  said 
to  have  been  in  use  in  the  days  of  Ki,*  the  son  of  Yu,  B.C.  2197 — 48, 
and  those  of  iron  under  Kung-Kia,  B.C.  1897 — 48,  so  that  there 
also  history  points  to  a  Bronze  Age.  But  this  by  the  way. 

Looking  at  the  fact  that  iron  and  steel  were  in  such  general 
use  at  Rome  during  the  period  of  her  wars  in  Western  Europe, 
we  may  well  believe  that  had  any  of  the  tribes  with  which  the 
Roman  forces  came  in  contact  been  armed  with  bronze,  such  an 
unusual  circumstance  could  hardly  have  escaped  record.  In  the 
Augustan  age  the  iron  swords  of  Noricum  were  in  great  repute,  and 
farther  north  in  Germany,  though  iron  did  not  abound,  it  was,  ac- 
cording to  Tacitus,  used  for  spears  and  swords.  The  Catti  had  the 
metal  in  abundance,  but  among  the  Aestii,  on  the  right  coast  of  the 
Baltic,  it  was  scarce.  The  Cumbrians  in  the  first  century  B.C.  had, 
according  to  Plutarch,!  iron  breast-plates,  javelins,  and  large  swords. 
The  Gauls  of  the  North  of  France  had  in  the  time  of  Julius 
Csesar  £  large  iron  mines  which  they  worked  by  tunnelling ;  the 
bolts  of  their  ships  were  made  of  that  metal,  and  they  had  even 
chain  cables  of  iron.  The  Britons  of  the  South  of  England  who 
were  in  such  close  communication  with  the  opposite  coast  of  Gaul 
must  have  had  an  equal  acquaintance  with  iron.  Csesar  mentions 
ingots  or  rings  of  iron  as  being  used  for  money,  and  observes 
that  iron  is  obtained  on  the  sea-coast,  but  in  small  quantities,  and 
adds  that  bronze  was  imported.!  Strabo  includes  iron,  as  well  as 
gold,  silver,  and  corn,  among  the  products  of  Britain.  In  Spain, 

*  See  Zeitsch.fiir  Eth."  vol.  ii.,  1870,  p.  131.  t  "  Vit.  Caii  Marii,"  420,  b. 

I  "Bell.  Gall.,"  iii.  13  ;  vii.  22.  §  Lib.  v.  .12. 

c  2 


20  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.    I. 

as  already  mentioned,  iron  had  long  been  known,  so  that  from  the 
concurrent  testimony  of  several  historians  we  may  safely  infer  that 
in  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar,  when  this  country  was  first  exposed 
to  Roman  influences,  it  had  already,  like  the  neighbouring  coun- 
tries to  the  south,  passed  from  the  Bronze  into  the  Iron  Age. 

Notwithstanding  all  this  historical  testimony  in  favour  of  the 
prior  use  of  bronze  to  that  of  iron,  there  have  been  not  a  few 
authors  who  have  maintained  that  the  idea  of  a  succession  of 
stone,  bronze,  and  iron  is  delusive  when  applied  to  Western  Europe. 
Among  these  was  the  late  Mr.  Thomas  Wright,  who  has  gone  so 
far  as  to  express  *  "a  firm  conviction  that  not  a  bit  of  bronze 
which  has  been  found  in  the  British  Islands  belongs  to  an  older 
date  than  that  at  which  Csesar  wrote  that  the  Britons  obtained 
their  bronze  from  abroad,  meaning  of  course  from  Gaul."  "  In 
fact  these  objects  in  bronze  were  Roman  in  character  and  in  their 
primary  origin."  As  in  the  same  page  he  goes  on  to  show  that 
two  hundred  years  before  Christ  the  swords  of  the  Gauls  were 
made  of  iron,  and  as  his  contentions  have  already  been  met  by  Sir 
John  Lubbock,f  and  will,  I  think,  be  effectually  disposed  of  by 
the  facts  subsequently  to  be  mentioned  in  this  volume,  it  seems 
needless  to  dwell  on  Mr.  Wright's  opinions.  I  may,  however, 
mention  that,+  while  denying  the  antiquity  of  British,  German, 
and  Scandinavian  weapons  and  tools  of  bronze,  he  admits  that  in 
Greece  and  Italy  that  metal  was  for  a  long  period  the  only  one  em- 
ployed for  cutting  instruments,  as  iron  was  not  known  in  Greece 
until  a  comparatively  late  date. 

About  one  hundred  and  thirty  years  ago,§  in  1751,  a  discussion 
as  to  the  date  of  bronze  weapons  took  place  among  the  members 
of  the  Acade'mie  des  Inscriptions  et  Belles  Lettres  of  Paris,  on  the 
occasion  of  some  bronze  swords,  a  spear-head,  and  other  objects 
being  found  near  Gannat,  in  the  Bourbonnais.  Some  antiquaries 
regarded  them  as  weapons  made  for  use  ;  others  as  merely  made  for 
show.  The  Count  de  Caylus  considered  that  the  swords  were 
Roman,  though  maintaining  that  copper  or  bronze  must  have 
been  in  earlier  use  than  iron.  Levesque  de  la  Ravaliere  main- 
tained, on  the  contrary,  that  neither  the  Greeks,  Romans,  Gauls, 
nor  Franks  had  ever  made  use  of  copper  or  bronze  in  their  swords. 
The  Abbs'  Barthelemy  showed  from  ancient  authors  that  the 

*  Trans.  Ethnol.  Soc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  190.     See  also  Anthrop.  Rev.,  vol.  iv.  p.  76. 

t  Trans.  Eth.  Soc.,  vol.  v.  p.  105;  "Preii.  Times,"  4th  ed.,  p.  18. 

J  Arch.  Annoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  73. 

§  See  Eossignol,  "  Les  Metaux  dans  1'Ant.,"  p.  205. 


DISPUTES   AS   TO   THE    THREE    PERIODS.  21 

earliest  arms  of  the  Greeks  were  of  bronze  ;  that  iron  was  only 
introduced  about  the  time  of  the  siege  of  Troy  ;  and  that  in  later 
times  among  the  Romans  there  was  no  mention  of  bronze  having 
been  used  for  weapons  of  offence,  and  therefore  that  these  swords 
were  not  Roman.  Strangely  enough,  he  went  on  to  argue  that 
they  were  Frankish,  and  of  the  time  of  Childeric.  Had  he  been 
present  at  the  opening  of  the  tomb  of  that  monarch  in  1653  he 
would,  however,  have  seen  that  he  had  an  iron  sword.* 

A  still  warmer  discussion  than  any  which  has  taken  place  in 
England  or  France,  one,  in  fact,  almost  amounting  to  an  inter- 
national war  of  words,  has  in  more  recent  times  arisen  between 
some  of  the  German  antiquaries  and  those  of  the  Scandinavian 
kingdoms  of  Denmark  and  Sweden. 

So  early  as  1860t  my  friend  Dr.  Ludwig  Lindenschmit,  of 
Mainz,  had  commenced  his  attack  on  "  the  so-called  Bronze 
Period,"  and  shown  a  disposition  to  regard  all  bronze  antiquities 
of  northern  countries  as  of  Italian  origin,  or,  if  made  in  the  coun- 
tries where  found,  as  mere  homely  imitations  of  imported  articles. 
Not  content  with  this,  he  in  1875  +  again  mustered  his  forces  and 
renewed  the  campaign  in  even  a  more  formal  manner.  He  found 
a  formidable  ally  in  Dr.  Hostmann,  whose  comments  on  Dr.  Hans 
Hildeb rand's  "  Heathen  Period  in  Sweden  "  are  well  worth  the 
reading,  and  contain  a  vast  amount  of  interesting  information. 

Dr.  Hostmann's  method  of  dealing  with  Dr.  Hans  Hildebrand 
brought  Dr.  Sophus  Miiller  §  to  the  rescue,  with  whom  Dr.  Linden- 
schmit ||  at  once  grappled.  Shortly  after  Dr.  Hostmann  If  again 
appears  upon  the  scene,  and  before  engaging  with  Dr.  Sophus 
Miiller  goes  so  far  as  to  argue  that  while  Greek  swords  of  iron 
are  known  to  belong  to  the  eighth  century  B.C.,  no  bronze  sword 
of  that  country  can  with  safety  be  assigned  to  an  earlier  date  than 
the  sixth  century,  and,  indeed,  these  may  have  been  only  weapons 
of  parade,  or  possibly  funereal  offerings  in  lieu  of  efficient  swords. 
Rector  Genthe  **  also  engages  in  the  fight  upon  the  same  side. 

These  three  antagonists  bring  Sophus  Miiller  ft  again  to  the 
front,  and  as  one  great  argument  of  his  opponents  was  that  bronze 
objects  could  not  be  produced  with  the  finish  and  orna- 
mentation which  is  found  upon  them  without  the  use  of  iron  and 

*  Cochet,  "Le  Tombeau  de  Childeric,"  i.  p.  1". 

t  "  Sammlung  zu  Sigmaringen,"  p.  153. 

J  Archiv,  fur  AnthropoL,  vol.  viii.  p.  161. 

§  Archiv.,  vol.  ix.  p.  127.  ||  Op.  cit.,  p.  141.  H  Of.  tit.,  p.  185. 

**  Arch,  fur  Anthrop.,  vol.  ix.  p.  181.  ft  ^-/-  ^-»  vo1-  *•  P-  2?- 


22  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.   I. 

steel  tools,  he  brings  forward  an  official  document  signed  by  four 
authorities  in  the  museum  at  Copenhagen,  and  stating  that  pre- 
cisely similar  ornamentation  to  the  spirals,  zigzags,  and  punched 
lines  which  occur  on  Scandinavian  bronze  antiquities  had  been 
produced  in  their  presence  by  a  workman  using  bronze  tools  only 
on  a  plate  of  bronze.  Both  plate  and  tools  were  of  the  same 
alloy,  viz.  9  of  copper  to  1  of  tin. 

On  this  a  final  charge  is  made  by  Professor  Hostmann  *  and 
Dr.  Lindenschmit,  the  former  of  whom  produces  a  kind  of  affidavit 
from  the  late  director  of  the  Polytechnic  School  at  Hanover  and  the 
court  medallist  of  the  same  town,  to  the  effect  that  certain  kinds 
of  punched  work  cannot  be  produced  with  bronze  punches,  and 
the  editors  of  the  Archiv  think  it  best  to  close  the  discussion 
after  Dr.  Lindenschmit' s  final  retort. 

I  have  not  thought  it  worth  while  to  enter  into  all  the  details 
of  this  controversy,  as  even  to  summarise  them  would  occupy 
more  room  than  I  could  spare.  It  seems  to  me,  however,  that  a 
considerable  amount  of  misconception  must  have  existed  in  the 
minds  of  some  of  the  disputants,  both  as  to  the  accepted  meaning 
of  the  term  Bronze  Age,  as  applied  not  chronologically,  but  to  a 
certain  stage  of  civilisation,  and  as  to  the  limitation  of  the  objects 
which  can  with  propriety  be  referred  to  that  age.  No  antiquary 
of  experience  will  deny  that  many  bronze  ornaments,  and  even 
some  bronze  weapons,  remained  in  use  long  after  iron  and  even 
steel  were  known,  any  more  than  he  would  deny  that  the  use  of 
stone  for  certain  purposes  continued  not  only  after  bronze  was 
known,  but  even  after  iron  and  steel  were  in  general  use,  and,  in 
fact,  up  to  the  present  time,  not  only  in  barbarian  but  in  civilised 
countries.  Our  flint  strike-a-lights  and  our  burnishers  are  still 
of  much  the  same  character  as  they  were  some  thousands  of 
years  ago,  and  afford  convincing  instances  of  this  persistent  use. 

The  real  question  at  issue  is  not  whether  any  bronze  weapons 
co-existed  with  those  of  iron  and  steel  in  Western  Europe,  but 
whether  any  of  them  were  there  in  use  at  a  period  when  iron  and 
steel  were  unknown.  Moreover,  it  is  not  a  question  as  to  whence 
the  knowledge  of  bronze  wTas  derived,  nor  whether  at  the  time 
the  Scandinavians  or  Britons  were  using  bronze  for  their  tools  and 
Aveaporis,  the  inhabitants  of  Greece  and  Italy  were  already  ac- 
quainted with  iron  and  steel ;  but  it  is  a  question  whether  in  each 
individual  country  there  arrived  a  time  when  bronze  came  into 

*  Arch.f.  Anthrop.,  vol.  x.  pp.  41,  63. 


THE    SUCCESSION    OF    IRON    TO    BRONZE.  23 

use  and  for  certain  purposes  superseded  stone,  while  iron  and 
steel  were  practically  unknown. 

This  is  a  question  to  be  solved  by  evidence,  though  in  the 
nature  of  things  that  evidence  must  to  some  extent  be  of  a  nega- 
tive character.  When  barrow  after  barrow  is  opened,  and  weapons 
of  bronze  and  stone  only  are  found  accompanying  the  interments, 
and  not  a  trace  of  iron  or  steel ;  when  hoards  of  rough  metal 
and  broken  bronze,  together  with  the  moulds  of  the  bronze- 
founder  and  some  of  his  stock-in-trade,  are  disinterred,  and  there 
is  no  trace  of  an  iron  tool  among  them — the  presumption  is  strong 
that  at  the  time  when  these  men  and  these  hoards  were  buried 
iron  was  not  in  use.  When,  moreover,  by  a  careful  examination 
of  the  forms  of  bronze  instruments  we  can  trace  a  certain  amount 
of  development  which  is  in  keeping  with  the  peculiar  properties 
of  bronze  and  not  with  those  of  iron,  and  we  can  thus  to  some 
extent  fix  a  kind  of  chronological  succession  in  these  forms,  the 
inference  is  that  this  evolution  of  form,  which  must  have  required 
a  considerable  amount  of  time,  took  place  without  its  course  being 
affected  by  any  introduction  of  a  fresh  and  qualifying  influence  in 
the  shape  of  iron  tools  and  weapons. 

When,  however,  in  various  countries  we  find  interments  and 
even  cemeteries  in  which  bronze  and  iron  weapons  and  instruments 
are  intermingled,  and  the  forms  of  those  in  bronze  are  what  we 
have  learnt  from  other  sources  to  regard  as  the  latest,  while  the 
forms  in  iron  are  not  those  for  which  that  metal  is  best  adapted, 
but  are  almost  servile  copies  of  the  bronze  instruments  found  with 
them,  the  proof  of  the  one  having  succeeded  the  other  is  almost 
absolutely  conclusive. 

The  lessons  taught  by  such  cemeteries  as  that  at  Hallstatt,  in 
Austria,  and  by  our  own  Late  Celtic  interments,  such  as  those  at 
Arras,  in  Yorkshire,  are  of  the  highest  importance  in  this  question. 

It  is  not,  however,  to  be  supposed  that  even  in  countries  by  no 
means  geographically  remote  from  each  other  the  introduction  either 
of  iron  or  bronze  must  of  necessity  have  taken  place  at  one  and  the 
same  chronological  period.  Near  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean 
the  use  of  each  metal  no  doubt  prevailed  far  earlier  than  in  any 
of  the  northern  countries  of  Europe  ;  and  though  the  knowledge 
of  metals  probably  spread  from  certain  centres,  its  progress  can 
have  been  but  slow,  for  in  each  part  of  Europe  there  appears  to 
have  been  some  special  development,  particularly  in  the  forms  of 
bronze  instruments,  and  there  is  no  absolute  uniformity  in  their 


24  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  1. 

types  extending  over  any  large  area.  In  each  country  the  process 
of  manufacture  was  carried  on,  and  though  some  commerce  in  tools 
and  arms  of  bronze  no  doubt  took  place  between  neighbouring 
tribes,  yet  as  a  rule  there  are  local  peculiarities  characteristic  of 
special  districts. 

So  marked  are  these  that  a  practised  archaeologist  can  in  almost 
all  cases,  on  inspection  of  a  group  of  bronze  antiquities,  fix  with 
some  degree  of  confidence  the  country  in  which  they  were  found. 
To  this  rule  Britain  offers  no  exception,  and  though  some  forms  of 
instruments  were  no  doubt  imported,  yet,  as  will  subsequently  be 
seen,  our  types  are  for  the  most  part  indigenous. 

As  to  the  ornamentation  of  bronze  by  bronze  tools,  I  have  seen 
none  in  this  country  on  objects  which  I  should  refer  to  the  Bronze 
Age  but  what  could  have  been  effected  by  means  of  bronze 
punches,  of  which  indeed  examples  have  been  discovered  in  bronze- 
founders'  hoards  in  France,*  and  what  are  probably  such  also  in 
Britain.  Such  ornamentation  is,  however,  simple  compared  with 
that  on  many  of  the  Danish  forms,  and  yet  I  have  seen  the  com- 
plicated Scandinavian  ornaments  accurately  and  sharply  repro- 
duced by  Dr.  Otto  Tischler,  by  means  of  bronze  tools  only,  on 
bronze  of  the  ordinary  ancient  alloy. 

But  even  supposing  that  iron  and  steel  were  known  during  some 
part  of  the  so-called  Bronze  Age,  I  do  not  see  in  what  manner  it 
would  affect  the  main  features  of  the  case  or  the  interest  attaching  to 
the  bronze  objects  which  I  am  about  to  describe.  "  De  non  apparen- 
tibus  et  non  existentibus  eadem  est  ratio  "  is  a  maxim  of  some 
weight  in  archeology  as  well  as  in  law  ;  and  in  the  absence  of  iron 
and  all  trace  of  its  influence,  it  matters  but  little  whether  it  was 
known  or  not,  except  in  so  far  as  a  neglect  of  its  use  would  argue  some 
want  of  intelligence  on  the  part  of  those  who  did  not  avail  them- 
selves of  so  useful  a  metal.  It  will  be  seen  hereafter  that  some  of 
the  objects  described  in  these  pages  actually  do  belong  to  an  Iron 
Period,  and  nothing  could  better  illustrate  the  transition  of  one 
Period  into  another,  or  the  overlapping  of  the  Bronze  Age  upon 
that  of  Iron,  than  the  fact  that  in  these  pages  devoted  to  the 
Bronze  Period  I  must  of  necessity  describe  many  objects  which 
were  still  in  use  when  iron  and  steel  were  superseding  bronze,  in 
the  same  manner  as  in  my  "Ancient  Stone  Implements"  I  was  forced 
to  describe  many  forms,  such  as  battle-axes,  arrow-heads,  and 
bracers,  which  avowedly  belonged  to  the  Bronze  Period. 

*  Mortillet,  "  Fonderie  de  Larnaud,"  32,  38. 


THE   PRESERVATION    OF    ANCIENT   IRON.  25 

A  point  which  is  usually  raised  by  those  who  maintain  the 
priority  of  the  use  of  iron  to  that  of  bronze  is,  that  inasmuch  as 
it  is  more  readily  oxidized  and  dissolved  by  acids  naturally  present 
in  the  soil,  iron  may  have  disappeared,  and  indeed  has  done  so, 
while  bronze  has  been  left  ;  so  that  the  absence  of  iron  as  an 
accompaniment  to  all  early  interments  counts  for  nothing.  Pro- 
fessor Rolleston,*  in  a  paper  on  the  three  periods  known  as  the 
Iron,  the  Bronze,  and  the  Stone  Ages,  has  well  dealt  with  this 
point ;  and  observes  that  in  some  graves  of  the  Bronze  Period  the 
objects  contained  are  incrusted  with  carbonate  of  lime,  which 
would  have  protected  any  iron  instrument  of  the  Bronze  Period  as 
well  as  it  has  done  those  of  Saxon  times.  Not  only  are  the  iron 
weapons  discovered  in  Saxon  cemeteries  often  in  almost  perfect 
preservation,  but  on  the  sites  of  Roman  occupation  whole  hoards 
of  iron  tools  have  been  found  but  little  injured  by  rust.  The  fact 
that  at  Hallstatt  and  other  places  in  which  graves  have  been 
examined  belonging  to  the  transitional  period,  when  both  iron 
and  bronze  were  in  use  together,  the  weapons  and  tools  of  iron, 
though  oxidized,  still  retain  their  form  and  character  as  com- 
pletely as  those  in  bronze,  also  affords  strong  ground  for  believing 
that  had  iron  been  present  with  bronze  hi  other  early  interments 
it  would  also  have  been  preserved.  The  importance  attaching  to 
the  reputed  occurrence  of  bronze  swords  with  Roman  coins  as  late 
as  the  time  of  Magnentius  cannot  be  better  illustrated  than  by  a 
discovery  of  my  own  in  the  ancient  cemetery  of  Hallstatt.  In 
company  with  Sir  John  Lubbock  I  was  engaged  in  opening  a 
grave  in  which  we  had  come  to  an  interment  of  the  Early 
Iron  Age,  accompanied  by  a  socketed  celt  and  spear-heads  of 
iron,  when  amidst  the  bones  I  caught  sight  of  a  thin  metallic 
disc  of  a  yellowish  colour  which  looked  like  a  coin.  Up  to 
that  time  no  coin  had  ever  been  found  in  any  one  of  the 
many  hundred  graves  which  had  been  examined,  and  I  eagerly 
picked  up  this  disc.  It  proved  to  be  a  "  sechser,"  or  six-kreutzer 
piece,  with  the  date  1826,  which  by  some  means  had  worked  its 
way  down  among  the  crevices  in  the  stony  ground,  and  which 
from  its  appearance  had  evidently  been  buried  some  years.  Had 
this  coin  been  of  Roman  date  it  might  have  afforded  an  argument 
for  bringing  down  the  date  of  the  Hallstatt  cemetery  some  cen- 
turies in  the  chronological  scale.  As  it  is,  it  affords  a  wholesome 
caution  against  drawing  important  inferences  from  the  mere  collo- 

*  Trans.  Brist.  and  Glouc.  Arch.  Soc.,  1878. 


26  INTRODUCTORY.  [CHAP.  I. 

cation  of  objects  when  there  is  any  possibility  of  the  apparent 
association  being  only  due  to  accident. 

In  further  illustration  of  the  succession  of  the  three  Ages  of 
Stone,  Bronze,  and  Iron  in  Western  Europe,  I  might  go  on  to 
cite  cases  of  the  actual  superposition  of  the  objects  of  one  age 
over  those  of  another,  such  as  has  been  observed  in  several  barrows 
and  in  the  well-known  instance  of  the  cone  of  La  Tiniere,  in  the 
Lake  of  Geneva,  recorded  by  Morlot. 

It  will,  however,  be  thought  that  enough,  if  not  more  than 
enough,  has  already  been  said  on  the  general  question  of  a  Bronze 
Age  in  a  book  particularly  devoted  to  the  weapons  and  instru- 
ments of  bronze  found  in  the  British  Isles.  It  is  now  time  to 
proceed  with  the  examination  and  description  of  their  various 
forms  ;  and  in  doing  this  I  propose  to  treat  separately,  so  far  as 
possible,  the  different  classes  of  instruments  intended  each  for  some 
special  purpose,  and  at  the  same  time  to  point  out  their  analogies 
with  instruments  of  the  same  character  found  in  other  parts  of 
Europe.  Their  chronological  sequence  so  far  as  it  can  be  ascer- 
tained, the  position  in  time  of  the  Bronze  Period  of  Britain  and 
Ireland,  and  the  sources  from  which  our  bronze  civilisation  was 
derived,  will  be  discussed  in  a  concluding  chapter. 

I  begin  with  the  instrument  of  the  most  common  occurrence, 
the  so-called  celt. 


CHAPTER  II. 

CELTS. 

OF  all  the  forms  of  bronze  instruments  the  hatchet  or  axe,  to 
which  the  name  of  celt  has  been  applied,  is  perhaps  the  most 
common  and  the  best  known.  It  is  also  probably  among  the 
earliest  of  the  instruments  fabricated  from  metal,  though  in 
this  country  it  is  possible  that  some  of  the  cutting  instruments, 
such  as  the  knife-daggers,  which  required  a  less  amount  of  metal 
for  their  formation,  are  of  equal  or  greater  antiquity. 

These  tools  or  weapons — for,  like  the  American  tomahawk,  they 
seem  to  have  been  in  use  for  peaceful  as  well  as  warlike  purposes — 
may  be  divided  into  several  classes.  Celts  may  be  described  as 
flat ;  flanged,  or  having  ribs  along  the  sides  ;  winged,  or  having 
the  side  flanges  extended  so  as  almost  to  form  a  socket  for  the 
handle  on  either  side  of  the  blade,  to  which  variety  the  name  of 
palstave  has  been  given  ;  and  socketed.  Of  most  of  these  classes 
there  are  several  varieties,  as  will  be  seen  farther  on. 

The  name  of  celt  which  has  been  given  to  these  instruments  is 
derived  from  the  doubtful  Latin  word  "  celtis  "  or  "  celtes,"  a  chisel, 
which  is  in  its  turn  said  to  be  derived  a  coelando  (from  carving), 
and  to  be  the  equivalent  of  codum. 

The  only  author  in  whose  works  the  word  is  found  is  St.  Jerome, 
and  it  is  employed  both  in  his  Vulgate  translation  of  the  Book  of 
Job*  and  in  a  quotation  from  that  book  in  his  Epistle  to  Pam- 
machius.  The  word  also  occurs  in  an  inscription  recorded  by 
Gruter  and  Aldus, t  but  as  this  inscription  is  a  modern  forgery, 
it  does  not  add  to  the  authority  of  the  word  "  celtis." 

Mr.  Knight  Watson,  Sec.  S.  A.,  in  an  interesting  paper  com- 
municated to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,  J  has  given 

*  Cap.  xix.  v.  24. 

t  P.  329,  1.  23.  NEQVE  HIC  ATRAMENTVM,  VEL  PAPYRVS,  AVT  MEM- 
Bit  ANA  VLLA  ADHVC,  SED  MALLEOLO  ET  CELTE  LITERATVS  SILEX. 

This  inscription  is  said  to  have  been  found  at  Pola,  in  Istria. 
J  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  396. 


28  CELTS.  [CHAP.  IT. 

several  details  as  to  the  origin  and  use  of  this  word,  which  he  con- 
siders to  have  been  founded  on  a  misreading  of  the  word  certe,  arid 
the  derivation  of  which  from  codo  he  regards  as  impossible.  There 
can  be  no  doubt,  as  Beger  pointed  out  two  centuries  ago,  that  a 
number  of  MSS.  of  the  Vulgate  read  certe  instead  of  celte  in  the 
passage  in  Job  already  mentioned,  and  that  in  all  probability  these 
are  the  most  ancient  and  the  best.  But  this  only  adds  to  the  dif- 
ficulty of  understanding  how  a  recently  invented  and  an  unknown 
word,  such  as  celte  is  presumed  to  be,  can  have  ever  supplanted  a 
well-known  word  like  certe  ;  and  so  far  as  the  Burial  Service  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  is  concerned  can  have  maintained  its  ground 
for  centuries.  Nor  is  this  difficulty  diminished  when  we  consider 
that  the  ordinary  and  proper  translation  of  the  Hebrew  ^h  is 
either  "  in  seternum  "  or  "  in  testimonium,"  according  as  the  word 
is  pointed  13?b  or  13?b,  and  that,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  there  is  no 
other  instance  of  its  being  translated  "certe."  On  the  other  hand,  a 
nearly  similar  word,  to375  "  with  a  stylus,"  or,  as  it  is  translated,  "  a 
pen,"  occurs  in  the  same  passage  ;  and  assuming  that  this  was  by 
some  accident  read  for  13?b  by  St.  Jerome,  he  would  have  thought 
that  the  word  for  stylus  was  used  twice  over,  and  have  inserted 
some  word  to  designate  a  graving  tool,  by  way  of  a  synonym.  The 
probability  of  such  an  error  would  be  increased  if  his  MS.  had 
the  lines  arranged  in  couplets  in  accordance  with  its  poetical 
character,  the  passage  standing  thus  when  un-pointed  :  — 

n-iesn  bm  to^n 


Very  possibly  the  word  used  by  St.  Jerome  may  not  have  been 
celte  but  codo,  and  the  corruption  into  celte  in  order  to  make  a 
distinction  between  heaven  and  a  chisel  would  then  at  all  events 
have  been  possible. 

The  other  contention  involves  two  extreme  improbabilities  —  the 
one,  that  St.  Jerome,  having  in  his  second  revision  of  the  Bible 
translated  the  passage  as  "  in  testimonium  in  petris  sculpantur," 
should  in  the  Vulgate  have  given  the  inaccurate  rendering  "  certe 
sculpantur  in  silice  ;  "  the  other  and  the  more  extreme  of  the  two, 
that  the  well-known  word  certe  should  have  been  ousted  by  a 
word  like  celte  had  it  been  utterly  new-fangled. 

Under  any  view  of  the  case  there  are  considerable  difficulties, 
but  as  the  word  celt  has  now  obtained  a  firm  hold  in  our  language, 
it  will  be  convenient  to  retain  it,  whatever  its  origin  or  derivation. 


ORIGIN   OF    THE    WORD    CELT.  29 

It  has  been  the  fashion  among  some  who  are  fond  of  novelties 
to  call  these  instruments  "  kelts,"  possibly  from  some  mental 
association  of  the  instruments  with  a  Celtic  or  Keltic  population. 
From  some  such  cause  also  some  of  the  French  antiquaries  must 
have  coined  the  new  plural  to  the  word,  Celtce.  Even  in  this 
country  it  has  been  said  *  with  regard  to  "  the  ancient  weapon 
denominated  the  celt,"  "  Our  antiquarians  have  commonly  as- 
cribed them  to  the  ancient  Celtse,  and  hence  have  given  them  this 
unmeaning  appellation."  If  any  one  prefers  pronouncing  celt  as 
"  kelt,"  or  celestial  as  "  kelestial,"  let  him  do  so  ;  but  at  all  events 
let  us  adhere  to  the  old  spelling.  How  the  Romans  of  the  time 
of  St.  Jerome  would  have  pronounced  the  word  ccelum  or  celtis 
may  be  inferred  from  the  punning  line  of  Ausonius  with  regard 
to  Venus,  f 

"  Orta  salo,  suscepta  solo,  patre  edita  ccelo." 

The  first  author  of  modern  times  whose  use  of  the  word  in  con- 
nection with  Celts  I  can  trace  is  Beger,  who,  in  his  "  Thesaurus 
Brandenburgicus  "  +  (1696),  gives  an  engraving  of  a  celt  of  the 
palstave  form,  under  the  title  Celtes,  together  with  the  following 
dialogue  : — 

"Et  nomen  et  instrumentum  mini  obscurum  est,  infit  AR- 
CBLEOPHILUS  ;  Instrumentum  Statuariorum  est,  respondit  DULO- 
DORUS,  qui  simulacra  ex  Cera,  Alabastro,  aliisque  lapidum 
generibus  csedunt  et  poliunt.  Grsecis  dicitur  'EyKOTrevs,  qua  voce 
Lucianus  usus  est  in  Somnio,  ubi  cum  lusum  non  insuavem 
dixisset,  Deos  sculpere,  et  parva  qusedam  simulacra  adornare,  addit 
ey/f07rea  <yap  rti/a  JJ.OL  8ou?,  scilicet  avunculus,  id  quod  Joh.  Bene- 
dictus  vertit,  Gelte  data.  Celte  1  excepit  ARCH^OPHILUS  ;  at  nisi 
fallor  hsec  vox  Latinis  incognita  est  ?  Habetur,  inquit  DULO 
DORUS,  in  versione  vulgata  Libri  Hiob  c.  19  quamvis  alii  non 
Celte,  sed  Certe  ibi  legant,  quod  tamen  minus  quadrat.  Quicquid 
sit,  instrumentum  Statuariorum  hoc  esse,  ex  forma  patet,  figuris 
incidendis  aptissima ;  neque  enim  opinio  Molineti  videtur  admit- 
tenda,  qui  Securim  appellat,  cum  nullus  aptandi  manubrii  locus 
huic  faveat.  Metallum  reposuit  ARCH^EOPHILUS,  minus  videtur 
convenire.  Instrumentum  hoc  ex  sere  est,  quod  duritiem  lapidum 
nescio  an  superare  potuerit  ?  Uti  lapides  diversi  sunt,  regessit 
DULODORUS,  ita  diversa  fuisse  etiain  metalla  instrumentorurn  iis 

*  Rev.  John  Dow  in  Archwol.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.   199.     See  also  Pegge  in  the  Arch., 
vol.  ix.  p.  88,  and  Whitaker's  "  Hist,  of  Manchester,"  vol.  i.  p.  24. 
t  Epig.  xxxiii.  1.  1.  J  Vol.  iii.  p.  418. 


30  CELTS.  [CHAP.  n. 

csedendis  destinatorum,  facile  cesserim.  Vet.  Gloss.  Celtem 
iTistrumentum  ferreum  dicit  proculdubio  quod  durioribus  lapidibus 
ferreum  chalybe  munitum  servierit.  Hoc  autem  non  obstat,  ut 
sereum  vel  ceris,  vel  terris,  vel  lapidibus  mollioribus  fuerit  adhibi- 
tum.  Si  tamen  res  Tibi  minus  probetur,  me  non  contradicente, 
molliori  vocabulo  yXixfreiov  ccelum  poteris  et  appellare  et  credere. 
r\u0eTa  etiam  Statuariorum  instrumenta  fuisse,  ex  allegato  modo 
Luciano  planum  est.  ubi  Humanitas,  si  me  relinquis,  inquit,  a^iy/xa 
vaAj/'^-j/,  KCU  /Jio^Xia,  KCU  'y\v<peia,  KCLL  /roTrea?,  KCLL 
iv  TCLLV  \epoLv  e£e<?,  habitum  servilem  assumes,  Vectes, 
COELA,  CELTES,  Scalpra  prce  manibus  habebis." 

The  idea  of  a  bronze  celt  being  a  statuary's  chisel  for  carving  in 
wax,  alabaster,  and  the  softer  kinds  of  stone  will  seem  the  less 
absurd  if  we  remember  that,  at  the  time  when  Beger  wrote,  the 
manner  in  which  such  instruments  were  hafted  was  unknown,  and 
that  all  antiquities  of  bronze  were  generally  regarded  as  being  of 
Roman  or  Greek  origin. 

Dr.  Olaf  Worm,  a  Danish  antiquary  of  the  seventeenth  century, 
was  more  enlightened  than  Beger,  for  in  his  "  Museum  Wormia- 
num,"*  published  in  1655,  he  states  his  belief  that  bronze  weapons 
had  formerly  been  in  use  in  Denmark,  and  cites  two  flat  or 
flanged  celts,  or  cunei,  as  he  calls  them,  found  in  Jutland,  which 
he  regards  as  hand  weapons  for  close  encounters.  He  also  was, 
nevertheless,  at  a  loss  to  know  how  they  were  hafted,  for  he  adds 
that  had  they  but  been  provided  with  shaft-holes  he  should  have 
considered  them  to  have  been  axes. 

In  a  work  treating  of  the  bronze  antiquities  of  Britain  we  must, 
however,  first  consider  the  opinion  of  British  antiquaries,  by  whom 
the  word  celt  had  been  completely  adopted  as  the  name  for  bronze 
hatchets  and  axes  by  the  middle  of  the  last  century.  Borlase,t 
in  his  "  Antiquities  of  Cornwall,"  1754,  speaking  of  some  "spear- 
heads "  of  copper  mentioned  by  Leland.  says  that  by  the  spear- 
heads he  certainly  meant  those  which  we  (from  Begerus)  now 
call  Celts.  Leland's  words  are  as  follows  :  + — "  There  was  found  of 
late  Yeres  syns  Spere  Heddes,  Axis  for  Warre,  and  Swerdes  of 
coper  wrapped  up  in  lynid  scant  perished  nere  the  Mount  in  S. 
Hilaries  Paroch  in  Tynne  Works ; "  so  that  it  by  no  means 
'follows  but  that  he  was  right  in  speaking  of  spear-heads,  for  if 
there  were  any  celts  among  the  objects  discovered  they  were  pro- 
bably termed  battle-axes  by  Leland. 

*  P.  354.  f  P.  265.  +  "  Itin.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  7. 


VIEWS   OF   EARLY   ANTIQUARIES.  31 

Camden  makes  mention  of  the  same  find  :  *  "At  the  foote  of 
this  mountaine  (St.  Michael's  Mount),  within  the  memorie  of  our 
Fathers,  whiles  men  were  digging  up  of  tin,  they  found  Spear- 
heads, axes,  and  swordes  of  brasse  wrapped  in  linnen,  such  as  were 
sometimes  found  within  the  forrest  of  Hercinia  in  Germanie,  and 
not  long  since  in  our  Wales.  For  evident  it  is  by  the  monuments 
of  ancient  Writers  that  the  Greeks,  the  Cimbrians,  and  the 
Britans  used  brazen  weapons,  although  the  wounds  given  with 
brasse  bee  lesse  hurtfull,  as  in  which  mettall  there  is  a  medicinable 
vertue  to  heale,  according  as  Macrobius  reporteth  out  of  Aristotle. 
But  happily  that  age  was  not  so  cunning  in  devising  meanes  to 
mischiefe  and  murthers  as  ours  is." 

Hearne,  the  editor  of  Leland's  "  Itinerary,"  took  a  less  philoso- 
phical view  of  these  instruments.  Writing  to  Thoresby  t  in 
1709,  he  maintains  that  some  old  instruments  of  bronze  found 
near  Bramham  Moor,  Yorkshire,  are  not  the  heads  of  British 
spears  ;  on  the  contrary,  they  are  Roman,  not  axes  used  in  their 
sacrifices,  nor  the  heads  of  spears  and  javelins,  but  chisels  which 
were  used  to  cut  and  polish  the  stones  in  their  tents.  Such 
instruments  were  also  used  in  making  the  Roman  highways  and  in 
draining  their  fens. 

Plot  J  also,  at  a  somewhat  earlier  date,  asserted  a  Roman  origin 
for  bronze  celts,  which  he  regarded  as  the  heads  of  bolts,  founding 
his  opinion  mainly  on  two,  which  are  engraved  in  the  Museum 
Moscardi.  These,  which  are  reproduced  in  the  Archceologia, 
vol.  v.  PL  VIII.  18  and  19,  are  of  the  palstave  form,  and  were 
regarded  by  Moscardo  §  as  the  heads  of  great  darts  to  be  thrown 
from  a  catapult.  A  flat  celt  found  in  Staffordshire,  ||  Plot  takes  to 
be  the  head  of  a  Roman  securis  with  which  the  Popes  slew  their 
sacrifices. 

Rowland.^  in  his  "  Mona  Antiqua  Restaurata,"  1723,  suggested 
that  looped  palstaves  fastened  by  a  thong  to  a  staff  might  be  used 
as  war  flails. 

The  imaginative  Dr.  Stukeley,  in  the  year  1724,  communicated 
to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  a  discourse  on  the  use  of  celts, 
which  is  to  be  found  in  the  Minute  Book  of  the  Society.  An 
abstract  of  it  is  given  by  Mr.  Lort  **  in  his  paper  subsequently  men- 

*  "  Britannia,"  ed.  1637,  p.  188. 

t  "Thoresby's  Correspondence,"  vol.  ii.  p.  211. 

;  "Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffordshire,"  1686,  p.  403. 

§  "Mus.  Lud.  Moscard."     Padua,  1656,  fol.  305,  lib.,  in.  c.  174. 

||   "Nat.  Hist,  of  Staff.,"  p.  403.  f  P.  86.  **  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  110. 


32  CELTS.  [CHAP.  n. 

tioned.  Dr.  Stukeley  undertook  to  show  that  celts  were  British 
and  appertaining  to  the  Druids,  who,  when  not  using  them  to  cut 
off  the  boughs  of  oak  and  mistletoe,  put  them  in  their  pouches, 
or  hung  them  to  their  girdles  by  the  little  ring  or  loop  at  the 
side.  In  a  more  sensible  manner  he  divided  them  into  two 
classes,  the  recipient  and  the  received  ;  that  is  to  say,  the  socketed, 
in  which  the  handle  was  received,  and  the  flat  and  palstave  forms, 
which  entered  into  a  notch  in  the  handle. 

Borlase,*  notwithstanding  that  he  was  under  the  impression 
that  a  number  of  socketed  celts  found  at  Karnbre  in  1744  were 
accompanied  by  Roman  coins,  one  of  them  at  least  as  late  as 
the  time  of  Constantius  I.,  did  "  not  take  them  to  be  purely 
Roman,  foreign,  or  of  Italian  invention  and  workmanship." 

He  argues  that  the  Romans  of  Italy  would  not  have  made  such 
instruments  of  brass  after  Julius  Caesar's  time,  when  the  superior 
hardness  of  iron  was  so  well  understood,  and  that  metal  was  so 
easily  to  be  procured.  Farther,  that  no  representations  of  such 
weapons  occur  on  the  Trajan  or  Antonine  Columns,  that  few 
specimens  exist  in  the  cabinets  of  the  curious  in  Italy,  where  they 
are  regarded  as  Transalpine  antiquities,  and  that  none  have 
been  found  among  the  ruins  of  Herculaneum  ;  t  nor  are  any  pub- 
lished in  the  Museum  Romanum  or  the  Museum  Kircherianum. 
He  concludes  that  they  were  made  and  used  in  Britain,  but  that 
though  they  were  originally  of  British  invention  and  fabric,  they 
were  for  the  most  part  made  when  the  Britons  had  improved  their 
arts  under  their  Roman  masters,  as  most  of  them  seem  too  correct 
and  shapely  for  the  Britons  before  the  Julian  conquest. 

As  to  the  uses  of  celts,  Borlase  cites  the  various  opinions  of  the 
learned,  and  observes  that  if  they  had  not  been  advanced  by  men 
of  learning  it  would  be  scarce  excusable  to  mention  some  of  them, 
much  less  to  refute  them.  They  had  been  taken  for  heads  of 
walking  staffs,  for  chisels  to  cut  stone  withal  (as  such  instruments 
must  have  been  absolutely  necessary  in  making  the  great  Roman 
roads),  as  tools  with  which  to  engrave  letters  and  inscriptions,  as 
the  sickles  with  which  the  Druids  cut  the  sacred  mistletoe,  and  as 
rests  to  support  the  lituus  of  the  Roman  augurs.  After  all,  how- 
ever, Borlase  himself  comes  to  the  somewhat  lame  conclusion  that 
they  formed  the  head  or  arming  of  the  spear,  the  javelin,  or  the 

*  "  Ants,  of  Cornwall,"  p.  263. 

t  Count  de  Caylus  has,  however,  engraved  two  which  are  said  to  have  been  found  at 
Herculaneum.  He  thought  that  they  were  chisels  (Bee.  d1  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  pi.  xciii. 
fig.  2;  xciv.  fig.  1). 


CONJECTURES  AS  TO  THE  USE  OF  CELTS.  OO 

arrow,  and  thinks  that  Mr.  Rowland  comes  the  nearest  to  the  truth 
of  any  author  he  has  read,  when  he  says  that  they  might  be  used 
with  a  string  to  draw  them  back,  and  something  like  a  feather  to 
guide  them  in  flying  towards  the  enemy,  and  calls  them  sling- 
hatchets.  He  concedes,  however,  that  for  such  weighty  heads 
there  was  no  occasion  for  feathers,  and  as  for  slinging  of  hatchets 
against  an  enemy,  he  does  not  remember  any  instance,  ancient 
or  modern.  Some  of  the  celts,  moreover,  are  too  light  to  do  any 
execution  if  thrown  from  the  hand. 

The  Rev.  Mr.  Lort,*  who  communicated  some  observations  on 
celts  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  in  1776,  differed  from  Dr. 
Borlase,  and  regarded  a  large  flat  celt  found  in  the  Lower 
Furness  as  manifestly  designed  to  be  held  in  the  hand  only,  and 
much  better  adapted  to  the  chipping  of  stone  than  to  any  other 
use  which  has  hitherto  been  found  out  for  it.  He  will  not,  how- 
ever, take  upon  himself  to  assert  that  some  socketed  celts,  which 
he  also  describes,  were  designed  for  the  same  purpose.  Appended 
to  the  paper  by  Mr.  Lort  are  notices  of  several  bronze  celts,  which 
at  different  times  had  been  brought  under  the  notice  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries.  Some  which  had  been  exhibited  in  1735 
were  regarded  by  Mr.  Benjamin  Cooke  and  Mr.  Collinson  as 
Gaulish  weapons  used  by  the  Roman  auxiliaries  at  the  time  of 
Claudius.  Mr.  Cooke,  however,  took  them  to  be  axes,  and 
mounted  one  of  them  on  a  shaft,  citing  Homer  as  his  authority 
for  doing  so,  and  speaking  of  the  a^ivrjv  ev%a\Kov. 

The  Rev.  Samuel  Pegge  in  1787  makes  some  pertinent  remarks 
respecting  celts  in  a  letter  to  Mr.  Lort,  which  is  published  in  the 
Archceologia.^  He  points  out  that  from  some  of  them  having 
been  found  in  barrows  associated  with  spear-heads  of  flint,  it  is 
probable  that  some  at  least  were  military  weapons.  He  also 
maintains  that  though  the  use  of  bronze  originally  preceded  that 
of  iron,  yet  that  regard  must  be  had  to  the  circumstances  of  each 
country,  so  that  it  would  not  follow  that  a  bronze  celt  found  in 
Ireland  was  prior  in  age  to  the  invention  of  iron.  All  that  could 
be  said  was  that  it  was  older  than  the  introduction  of  iron  into 
Ireland,  and  when  that  was,  no  one  could  pretend  to  say.  Mr. 
Pegge  did  not  approve  of  the  derivation  of  the  name  of  celt  from 
celtis  or  ccelare,  but  thought  it  derived  from  the  name  of  the 
Celtic  people  who  used  the  instruments.  In  his  opinion  the 
instruments  were  not  Roman,  especially  as  they  were  frequent  in 

*  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  106.  t  Vol.  ix.  p.  84. 

D 


34  CELTS.  [CHAP.  n. 

Ireland  and  in  places  where  the  Romans  never  were  settled.  The 
specimen  on  which  he  comments  is  of  the  palstave  form,  and, 
though  it  might  be  mounted  as  a  tool,  he  thinks  it  could  never  have 
served  as  an  axe,  but  it  might  have  tipped  a  dart  or  javelin. 

Douglas"""  was  of  opinion  that  the  bronze  arms  found  in  this 
country  were  not  Roman,  but  that  it  was  more  reasonable  to  refer 
them  to  the  early  inhabitants,  of  probably  not  less  than  two 
centuries  B.C. 

Mr.  C.  J.  Harford,  F.S.A.,t  writing  in  1801,  expressed  his 
opinion  that  a  clue  as  to  the  uses  of  celts  might  be  obtained  from 
a  consideration  of  similar  instruments  which  had  been  brought 
from  the  South  Sea  Islands.  "  Our  rude  forefathers  doubtless 
attached  the  celt  by  thongs  to  the  handle,  in  the  same  manner  as 
modern  savages  do ;  and,  like  them,  formed  a  most  useful  implement 
or  destructive  weapon  from  these  simple  materials."  He  thought 
that  the  metal  celts  might  have  been  fabricated  abroad  and  ex- 
ported to  this  country,  just  as  we  have  sent  to  the  South  Sea 
Islands  an  imitation  in  iron  of  the  stone  hatchet  there  in  use. 

Coming  down  to  later  times,  we  find  Sir  Richard  Colt  Hoare,+ 
who  discovered  a  few  flat  and  flanged  celts  in  the  Wiltshire  barrows, 
regarding  them  as  for  domestic,  and  not  for  military,  architectural, 
or  religious  purposes.  He  thought  that  the  flat  form  must  be  the 
most  ancient,  from  which  the  pattern  of  that  with  the  socket  for  the 
insertion  of  a  handle  was  taken  ;  for  among  the  numerous  speci- 
mens described  by  Mr.  Lort  in  the  Archceologia,  not  one  of  the 
latter  pattern  is  mentioned  as  having  been  discovered  in  a  barrow. 
As  many  were  found  in  Gaul,  he  rather  supposed  that  they  were 
imported  from  the  Continent ;  or,  perhaps,  the  art  of  making 
them  might  have  been  introduced  from  Gaul.  From  the  method 
of  hafting  of  one  of  those  he  found  (see  Fig.  189),  he  seems  to 
have  regarded  the  whole  of  them  as  chisels  rather  than  hatchets. 

Sir  Joseph  Banks,§  in  some  observations  communicated  to  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  hi  1818,  on  an  ancient  celt  found  near 
Boston,  Lincolnshire,  pointed  out  the  manner  in  which  looped  pal- 
staves could  be  hafted  so  as  to  serve  either  as  axes,  adzes,  or  chisels. 
He  thought  that  they  were  ill  adapted  for  any  warlike  purposes, 
and  regarded  them  as  tools  such  as  might  be  used  in  hollowing 
out  the  trunks  of  trees  to  form  canoes,  and  suggested  that  they 
were  secured  to  their  handles  by  strings  tied  round  them  in  the 

*  "Naenia  Britannica"  (1793),  p.  153.  t  Arch.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  98. 

\  "Ancient  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  1812,  p.  203.  §   Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  102. 


THE    PRESUMED    USES    OF    CELTS.  35 

same  manner  as  the  stone  axes  used  in  the  South  Sea  Islands  were 
fastened  to  theirs. 

About  the  year  1816  the  Rev.  John  Dow,*  in  some  remarks 
on  the  ancient  weapon  denominated  the  celt,  advocated  the  opinion 
that  it  was  an  axe,  and  probably  a  weapon  of  war.  He  also 
traces  its  connection  with  the  stone  celt,  from  which  he  considered 
it  to  have  been  developed. 

About  the  same  year  the  Rev.  John  Hodgson,  secretary  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  communicated  to 
that  society  a  valuable  memoir  in  the  shape  of  t"An  Enquiry  into 
the  Mra,  when  Brass  was  used  in  purposes  to  which  Iron  is  now 
applied,"  of  which  mention  has  already  been  made  in  the  Intro- 
ductory Chapter.  He  thought  that  celts  were  tools  which  were 
well  adapted  for  use  as  wedges  for  splitting  wood,  or  that  with 
wooden  hafts  they  might  be  used  as  chisels  for  hollowing  canoes 
and  for  similar  purposes,  some  instruments  found  with  them  being 
undoubtedly  gouges.  As  to  their  date,  he  thought  that  bronze 
began  to  give  way  to  iron  in  Britain  nearly  as  soon  as  it  did  in 
Greece,  and  that  consequently  the  celts,  &c.,  found  in  this  island 
belonged  to  an  era  500,  or  at  least  400  years,  B.C. 

In  1839  Mr.  Rickman  J  communicated  to  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries  a  paper  on  the  Antiquity  of  Abury  and  Stonehenge, 
in  the  notes  to  which  he  propounds  the  theory  that  the  socketed 
celts  were  used  merely  as  chisels,  with  hafts  of  wood  inserted  in 
the  socket.  They  could  be  then  either  held  in  the  hand  or  by 
means  of  a  withe,  like  a  blacksmith's  chisel,  while  they  were 
struck  with  a  stone  hammer. 

Among  writers  of  comparatively  modern  times,  the  first  whom  I 
have  to  mention  is  the  late  Mr.  G.  V.  Du  Noyer,§  who  in  1847  com- 
municated to  the  ArchaBological  Institute  two  papers  on  the  classi- 
fication of  bronze  celts,  which  are  still  of  great  value  and  interest. 
He  traces  the  gradual  development  in  form  from  the  bronze  celt 
shaped  like  a  wedge  to  that  which  is  socketed,  and  shows  that  an 
important  element  in  the  transition  from  one  form  to  the  other 
has  been  the  method  of  hafting.  He  also  enters  into  the  subjects 
of  the  casting  and  ornamentation  of  celts  ;  and  as  in  subsequent 
pages  I  shall  have  to  refer  to  these  as  well  as  to  the  methods  of 
hafting,  I  content  myself  here  with  citing  Mr.  Du  Noyer's  papers 
as  being  worthy  of  all  credit. 

*  Archaol.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  199.  t  Archaol.  JEliana,  vol.  i.  p.  17. 

I  Arch.,  vol.  xxviii.  p.  418.  §  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  pp.  1  and  327. 

D  2 


36  CELTS.  [CHAP.  n. 

In  1849  Mr.  James  Yates  communicated  a  paper  to  the  Archaeo- 
logical Institute  of  a  far  more  speculative  kind  than  those  of  Mr. 
Du  Noyer,  his  object  being  to  prove  that  among  the  various  uses 
of  bronze  celts  one  of  the  most  important  was  the  application  of 
them  in  destroying  fortifications  and  entrenchments,  in  making 
roads  and  earthworks,  and  in  similar  military  operations.  He 
confines  his  inquiry,  however,  to  those  which  were  adapted  to  be 
fitted  to  straight  wooden  handles.  Following  in  the  steps  of  some 
of  the  older  antiquaries,  he  appears  to  regard  them  as  of  Roman 
origin,  and  identifies  them  with  the  Roman  dolabra,  an  instrument 
which  he  thinks  was  used  as  a  chisel  or  a  crowbar.  In  fact,  he  was 
persuaded  that  the  celt  was  commonly  used  not  as  a  hatchet,  but 
as  a  spud  or  a  crowbar.  Had  he  but  been  acquainted  with  the 
ancient  handles,  such  as  have  been  discovered  in  the  Austrian 
salt-mines  and  elsewhere,  he  would  probably  have  come  round  to 
another  opinion  as  to  the  ordinary  method  of  hafting,  though  it  is 
of  course  possible  that  in  some  instances  these  instruments  may 
have  been  mounted  and  used  as  spuds.  Had  he  practically  tried 
mounting  them  and  using  them  as  crowbars,  he  would  have  found 
that  with  but  slight  strain  the  shafts  would  break  or  the  celts 
become  loosened  upon  them.  And  had  he  been  better  versed  in 
archaeology,  he  would  have  known  that  whatever  was  the  form  of 
the  Roman  dolabra,  or  whatever  the  uses  for  which  it  served,  it 
can  hardly  have  differed  from  their  other  implements  in  being 
made  of  bronze  and  not  of  iron  ;  and  he  would  have  thought  twice 
before  engraving  bronze  celts  from  Cornwall  and  Furness  as  illus- 
trations of  the  Roman  dolabra  in  Smith's  "  Dictionary  of  Greek 
and  Roman  Antiquities." 

The  ring  or  loop,  which  so  often  is  found  on  the  side  of  celts  of 
the  palstave  and  socketed  forms,  was  thought  by  Mr.  Yates  to  have 
been  principally  of  use  to  assist  in  carrying  them,  a  dozen  or 
twenty  perhaps  being  strung  together,  or  a  much  smaller  number 
tied  to  the  soldier's  belt  or  girdle.  He  also  thought  that  they 
might  serve  for  the  attachment  of  a  thong  or  chain  to  draw  the 
instrument  out  of  a  wall,  should  it  become  wedged  among  the  stones 
in  the  process  of  destruction. 

The  next  essay  on  celts  and  their  classification  which  I  must 
adduce  was  written  by  the  late  Rev.  Thomas  Hugo,  F.S.A.,*  who 
followed  much  the  same  system  as  Mr.  Du  Noyer,  so  far  as  the 
development  of  the  socketed  celt  was  concerned,  though  he  differed 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  1853,  vol.  ix.  p.  63. 


OPINIONS    OF    MODERN    WRITERS.  37 

from  him  with  regard  to  the  method  of  hafting,  as  he  was  persuaded 
that,  in  general,  celts  were  mounted  with  a  straight  shaft,  like  spuds. 
He  considered  that  the  loop  was  not  used  for  securing  the  celt  to 
its  haft,  but  for  hanging  it  up  at  home  when  not  in  use,  or  for 
suspending  it  from  the  soldier's  girdle  whilst  on  the  march. 

Mr.  Hugo's  paper  was  followed  by  some  supplementary  remarks 
from  Mr.  Syer  Cuming,  who  suggests  that  a  thong  may  have 
passed  through  the  loop  by  which  the  weapon  might  be  propelled, 
and  contends  that  socketed  celts  are  neither  chisels  nor  axe-blades, 
but  the  ferrules  of  spear-shafts,  which  might  be  fixed  in  the 
ground,  or  even  used  at  times  as  offensive  weapons. 

The  name  of  the  late  Mr.  Thomas  Wright*  has  already  been 
mentioned.  In  his  various  works  and  papers  he  claims  a  Roman 
origin  for  bronze  celts  and  swords,  though  admitting  that  they  may 
occasionally  have  been  made  in  the  countries  in  which  they  are 
found. 

Among  other  modern  writers  who  have  touched  upon  the  sub- 
ject of  celts,  I  may  mention  that  accomplished  antiquary,  the  late 
Mr.  Albert  Way,  F.S.A.,  whose  remarks  in  connection  with  an 
exhibition  of  bronze  antiquities  at  a  meeting  of  the  Archaeological 
Institute  in  1861 1  are  well  worth  reading.  I  may  also  refer  to  the 
late  Sir  W.  R.  Wilde,  in  his  "  Catalogue  of  the  Copper  and  Bronze 
Antiquities  in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,"  published 
in  the  same  year;  to  Mr.  Franks,  in  the  "Horse  Ferales;"  to  Sir 
John  Lubbock,  in  his  "  Prehistoric  Times ; "  and  to  General  A. 
Lane  Fox  (now  Pitt-Rivers),  in  his  excellent  lecture  on  Primitive 
Warfare,  section  iii.+ 

Canon  Greenwell,  in  his  "British  Barrows," §  has  also  devoted 
a  few  pages  to  the  consideration  of  bronze  celts  and  axe-heads, 
more  especially  in  connection  with  interments  in  sepulchral 
mounds. 

Foreign  writers  I  need  hardly  cite,  but  I  may  mention  a  re- 
markable idea  that  has  been  promulgated  by  Professor  Stefano  de 
Rossi  ||  as  to  celts  having  served  as  money,  which  has,  however,  been 
shown  by  Count  Gozzadini  to  be  unfounded. 

In  conclusion,  I  may  also  venture  to  refer  to  an  address  If  which 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  64. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  148,  et  seq. 

I  Jour.  Hoy.  Un.  Service  Inst.,  vol.  xiii.,  1869. 

§  P.  43,  et  seqq.  188. 

||  See  Revue  de  la  Numis.  Beige,  5th  Ser.,  vol.  vi.  p.  290. 

If  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  392. 


38  CELTS.  [CHAP.  n. 

I  delivered  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  on  the  occasion  of  an  exhi- 
bition of  bronze  antiquities  in  their  apartments  in  January,  1873. 

In  treating  of  the  different  forms  of  celts  on  the  present  occa- 
sion, I  shall  divide  them  into  the  following  classes  : — 

Flat  celts. 

Flanged  celts. 

Winged  celts  and  palstaves,  with  and  without  loops. 

Socketed  celts. 

What  are  known  as  tanged  celts  may  perhaps  be  more  properly 
included  under  the  head  of  chisels,  to  which  class  of  tools  it  is  not 
unlikely  that  some  of  the  narrow  celts  of  the  other  forms  should 
be  referred. 

It  is  difficult  to  draw  a  hard  and  fast  line  between  the  flat 
celts  and  the  flanged,  and  between  these  latter  and  the  so-called 
palstaves.  I  propose,  therefore,  to  include  the  flanged  celts,  which 
are  not  provided  with  a  stop-ridge  to  prevent  their  being  driven 
into  their  haft,  in  the  same  chapter  with  the  flat  celts,  and  to  treat 
of  those  which  have  a  stop-ridge  in  the  same  chapter  as  the  pal- 
staves, with  and  without  a  loop.  In  a  subsequent  chapter  I  shall 
speak  as  to  the  manner  in  which  these  instruments  were  probably 
hafted. 


CHAPTER  III. 

FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 

celts,  or  those  of  simple  form  with  the  faces  somewhat 
convex,  and  approximating  in  shape  to  the  polished  stone  celts  of 
the  Neolithic  Period,  have  been  regarded  by  several  antiquaries 
as  being  probably  the  earliest  bronze  implements  or  weapons. 
Such  a  view  has  much  to  commend  it,  but,  as  already  observed, 
it  may  be  doubted  whether  in  the  earliest  times,  when  metal  was 
scarce,  it  would  be  so  readily  applied  to  purposes  for  which  much 
of  the  precious  material  was  required,  as  to  the  manufacture  of 
weapons  or  tools  of  a  lighter  kind,  such  as  daggers  or  knives. 

Among  celts,  however,  the  simple  form,  and  that  most  nearly 
approaching  in  character  to  the  stone  hatchet,  was  probably  the 
earliest,  though  it  may  have  been  continued  in  use  after  the 
introduction  of  the  side  flanges,  the  stop-ridge,  and  even  the 
socket.  Some  celts  of  the  simplest  form  found  in  Ireland  are  of 
copper,  and  have  been  thought  to  belong  to  the  period  when  the 
use  of  stone  for  cutting  purposes  was  dying  out  and  that  of  metal 
coming  in ;  but  the  mere  fact  of  their  being  of  copper  is  by  no 
means  conclusive  on  this  point. 

A  copper  celt  of  the  precise  shape  of  an  ordinary  stone  celt, 
6  inches  long  and  2|  inches  wide,  which  was  found  in  an  Etruscan 
tomb,  and  is  preserved  in  the  Museum  at  Berlin,  appears  to  have 
been  cast  in  a  mould  formed  upon  a  stone  implement  of  the  same 
class.  It  has  been  figured  and  described  by  Sir  William  Wilde.  *~ 
I  have  not  seen  the  implement,  nor  am  I  aware  of  the  exact 
circumstances  of  the  finding.  Celts  may,  however,  like  the  flint 
arrow-heads  inserted  in  Etruscan  t  necklaces  of  gold,  have  been 
regarded  with  superstitious  reverence,  and  it  does  not  appear  to 
me  quite  certain  that  this  specimen  was  ever  in  actual  use  as  an 

*  "Catal.  Mus.  R.I.A.,"  pp.  367,  395  (Etruscan  Coll.,  Berlin,  No.  3244). 
t  "Horse  Ferales,"  p.  136 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  169. 


40 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP.  in. 


implement,  and  was  not  placed  in  the  grave  as  a  substitute  for  a 
stone  hatchet  or  Ceraunius. 

However  this  may  be,  some  of  the  earliest  bronze  or,  possibly, 
copper  celts  with  which  we  are  acquainted,  those  from  the  excavations 
of  General  di  Cesnola  in  Cyprus,  and  of  Dr.  Schliemann  at  His- 
sarlik,  are  of  the  simple  flat  form,  and  justify  Sir  W.  Wilde''"  in  his 
supposition  that  the  first  makers  of  these  instruments,  having 
once  obtained  a  better  material  than  stone,  repeated  the  form 
with  which  they  were  best  acquainted,  though  they  economized 
the  metal  and  lessened  the  bulk  by 
flattening  the  sides.  The  annexed 
cut,  Fig.  1,  shows  a  celt  from  Cyprus 
in  my  own  collection,  which  in  form 
might  be  matched  by  celts  of  flint, 
though  it  must  be  acknowledged  that 
the  type  in  stone  is  rather  that  of 
Scandinavia  than  of  Eastern  Europe 
or  the  Levant.  A  slight  ridge  in 
the  oxide  upon  it  seems  to  mark  the 
distance  that  the  narrow  end  pene- 
trated the  handle.  Numerous  tools 
or  weapons  of  the  same  form  were 
found  by  Dr.  Schliemann  t  in  his 
excavations  in  search  of  Troy.  They 
were  at  first  thought  to  be  of  copper, 
but  subsequently  proved  to  have  a 
small  per-centage  of  tin  in  them.  A 
number  of  flat  celts,  some  short  and 
broad,  and  others  long  and  narrow, 
were  found  at  Gungeria,  J  in  the  Mhow 
Talook,  about  forty  miles  north  of  Boorha,  in  Central  India,  many 
of  which  are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  On  analysis  Dr.  Percy 
found  them  to  be  of  pure  copper.  The  same  form  was  found  at  Tel 
Sifr,  in  Southern  Babylonia.  Some  from  that  place,  and  from  the 
island  of  Thermia,§  in  the  Greek  Archipelago,  are  also  in  the  British 
Museum.  Nearly  similar  instruments,  said  to  be  made  of  copper, 
have  been  found  in  Austria, II  Denmark,f  Sweden,**  Hungary, ft 

*  "Catal.  M.  R.I.A.,"  p.  366.  f  "Troy  and  its  Eemains,"  p.  330,  &c. 

"CoDg.  preh.,"  Stockholm  vol.  i.  p.  346.     Proc.  As.  Soc.  Bengal,  May,  1870. 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  437.      ||  Kenner,  "Arch.  Funde,"  1867,  p.  29. 

Worsaae,  "  Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  178.  *»  "Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.  p.  292. 

ft  "Cong,  preh.,"  Buda  Pest  vol.  i.  p.  227. 


Fig.  1.— Cyprus. 


DISCOVERIES    IN    BARROWS.  41 

France,*  and  Italy,  t  I  have  one  3f  inches  long,  from  Royat,  Puy  de 
Dome.  A  large  and  thicker  specimen  is  in  the  Museum  at  Toulouse. 
They  have  usually  a  small  per-centage,  O'lo  to  2 '08  of  tin  in  them.* 

I  have  already,  in  the  Introductory  Chapter,  made  some  remarks 
on  the  probability  of  a  copper  age  having,  in  some  part  of  the 
world,  preceded  that  of  bronze,  and  need  here  only  repeat  that  the 
occurrence  of  implements  in  copper,  of  the  forms  usually  occurring 
in  bronze,  does  not  of  necessity  imply  a  want  of  acquaintance  with 
the  tin  necessary  to  mix  with  copper  to  form  bronze,  but  may 
only  be  significant  of  a  temporary  or  local  scarcity  of  the  former 
metal.  I  may  also  add  that  without  actual  analysis,  it  is  unsafe, 
from  appearance  only,  to  judge  whether  copper  is  pure,  or  whether 
it  has  not  an  appreciable  per-centage  of  tin  in  it. 

In  treating  of  the  different  forms  and  characters  of  bronze  celts, 
and  of  the  places  and  circumstances  of  finding,  I  think  it  will  be 
best  first  to  take  those  from  England  and  Wales,  then  those  from 
Scotland,  and  lastly  those  from  Ireland.  I  begin  with  those  which 
have  been  found  in  barrows  in  England. 

Fig.  2  represents  a  flat  celt  found  in  a  barrow  in  the  parish  of  Butter- 
wick,  in  the  East  Eiding  of  Yorkshire,  by  the  Eev.  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.K.S.,  F.S.A.§  It  lay  at  the  hips  of 
the  body  of  a  young  man,  at  whose  right 
hand  the  knife-dagger  (Fig.  279)  and  the 
bronze  drill  or  pricker  (Fig.  225)  were 
found,  accompanied  by  a  flint  knife 
formed  from  a  broad  external  flake.  In 
front  of  the  chest  were  six  buttons,  five 
of  jet  and  one  of  sandstone,  two  of  which 
are  figured  in  my  "  Ancient  Stone  Imple- 
ments." ||  The  handle  of  the  celt  or  axe- 
head  could  be  plainly  traced  by  means  of 
a  dark  line  of  decayed  wood,  and  to  all 
appearance  the  weapon  had  been  worn 
slung  from  the  waist.  "  The  blade  is  of 
the  simplest  form,  modelled  on  the  pat- 
tern of  the  stone  axe,  and  may,  it  is 
probable,  be  regarded  as  the  earliest 
type  of  bronze  axe  antecedently  to  the 
appearance  of  either  flanges  or  socket. 
It  is  4  inches  long,  2f  inches  wide  at  the  pig.  2.— Butterwick.  j 

cutting  edge,  and  1£  inches  at  the  smaller 
end.  It  had  evidently  been  fixed  into  a  solid  handle  to  a  depth  of  2  inches.' 

»  Bull.  Soc.  de  Sorda,  Dax,  1878,  p.  57. 

t  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Copenhagen  vol.  p.  484. 

t  Morlot,  Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  du  Nord,  1866—71,  p.  25. 

§  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  188.     The  cut  is  Fig.  38. 

||  Figs.  369  and  370,  p.  407. 


42  FLAT   AND    FLANGED   CELTS.  [CHAP.  III. 

A  very  similar  discovery  to  that  at  Butterwick  was  made  by  the  late 
Mr.  Thomas  Bateman  in  a  barrow  upon  Parwich  Moor,  Derbyshire,* 
called  Shuttlestone,  opened  by  him  in  June,  1848.  In  this  case  a  man  of 
fine  proportions  and  in  the  prime  of  life  had  been  interred,  surrounded  by 
fern-leaves  and  enveloped  in  a  hide  with  the  hair  inwards.  Close  to  the 
head  were  a  small  flat  bead  of  jet  and  a  circular  flint  (probably  a 
"scraper").  In  contact  with  the  left  arm  lay  a  bronze  dagger,  much  like 
Fig.  279,  with  two  rivets  for  the  attachment  of  the  handle,  which  had 
been  of  horn.  About  the  middle  of  the  left  thigh  was  a  bronze  celt  of  the 
plainest  axe-shaped  type.  The  cutting  edge  was  turned  towards  the 
upper  part  of  the  person,  and  the  instrument  itself  had  been  inserted  into 
a  wooden  shaft  for  about  2  inches  at  the  narrow  end.  The  celt  and 
dagger  are  engraved  in  the  Archceological  Association  Journal,}  and  the 
former  in  the  Archceologia.\  It  is  about  5£  inches  long,  and  in  form  much 
like  Fig.  19. 

In  a  small  barrow  named  Borther  Low,§  about  two  miles  south  of 
Middleton  by  Youlgrave,  Mr.  William  Bateman  discovered  a  skeleton 
with  the  remains  of  a  plain  coarse  urn  on  the  left  side,  a  flint  arrow-head 
much  burnt,  a  pair  of  canine  teeth  of  either  a  fox,  or  a  dog  of  the  same 
size,  and  a  diminutive  bronze  celt.  In  the  catalogue  of  the  Bateman 
Museum  ||  this  is  described  as  "of  the  most  primitive  type,  closely 
resembling  the  stone  celts  in  form,"  and  2  inches  only  in  length.  It  is 
there  stated  to  have  been  found  with  a  flint  spear,  but  this  seems  to  be  a 
mistake  for  an  arrow-head.  ^[ 

Dr.  Samuel  Pegge,**  in  his  letter  to  Mr.  Lort  already  cited,  mentions  that 
"Mr.  Adam  Wolsey  the  younger,  of  Matlock  in  Derbyshire,  has  a  celt 
found  near  the  same  place  A.D.  1787,  at  Blakelow  in  the  parish  of 
Ashover,  with  a  spear-head  of  flint,  a  military  weapon  also."  Not 
improbably  this  was  an  axe-head  of  the  same  class. 

A  celt  of  much  the  same  character  as  Fig.  2,  but  in  outline  more 
nearly  resembling  Fig.  19,  4f  inches  long  and  2|  broad  at  the  cutting 
edge,  was  found  in  company  with  two  diadems  or  lunettes  of  gold  such 
as  the  Irish  antiquaries  call  "Minds,"  at  Harlyn,  in  the  parish  of 
Merryn,  near  Padstow,  Cornwall,  and  is  engraved  in  the  Archceological 
Journal.]}  The  objects  were  found  at  a  depth  of  about  six  feet  from  the 
surface,  and  with  them  was  another  bronze  article,  which  was  unfortu- 
nately thrown  away.  This  was  described  by  the  man  at  work  on  the  spot 
as  "like  a  bit  of  a  buckle."  The  discovery  was  quite  accidental,  and  no 
notice  seems  to  have  been  taken  as  to  whether  there  were  any  traces  of  an 
interment  at  the  spot,  though  the  earth  in  contact  with  the  articles  is 
described  as  having  been  "of  an  artificial  character." 

It  is  a  celt  of  this  kind  which  is  engraved  by  Plot  J  J  as  found  near 
St.  Bertram's  Well,  Ham,  Staffordshire.  He  describes  it  as  "  somewhat 
like,  only  larger  than,  a  lath-hammer  at  the  edge  end,  but  not  so  on  the 
other,"  and  regards  it  as  a  Eoman  sacrificial  axe. 

One  (4£  inches)  was  found  on  Bevere  Island,  Worcestershire.  §§ 

*"Ten  Years'  Diggings,"  p.  34.  "Catalogue,"  p.  75.  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ., 
vol.  vii.  p.  217.  t  Vol.  vii.  p.  217,  pi.  xix. 

" 


t  Vol.  xliii.  p.  445.  §  "  Vest,  of  the  Ants,  of  Derb.,"  p.  48. 

H  See  "  Catal.,"  p.  32,  No.  29. 
ix.  p.  85. 
"Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffordshire,"  tab.  xxiii.  p.  403 


P.  74,  No.  11.  ee  "    ata.,    p. 

277. 


**  Arch.,  vol.  ix.  p.  85.  tt  Vol.  xxii.  p. 

JJ  "Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffords 
§§  Allies,  p.  151,  pi.  iv.  11. 


DISCOVERIES   OF    FLAT   CELTS.  43 

Others  of  the  same  kind  have  been  found  near  Duxford,  Cambs,*  near 
Grappenhall,  Cheshire ;  f  the  Beacon  Hill,  Charnwood  Forest,  Leicester- 
shire ;  I  and,  near  Battlefield,  Shrewsbury,  §  in.  company  with  a  palstave 
without  loop,  some  sickle-like  objects,  and  other  articles.  One,  9  inches 
long  and  5  inches  broad  at  the  cutting  edge,  found  in  the  ruins  of  Grleas- 
ton  Castle,  Lower  Furness,  Lancashire,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia.\\ 

The  celts  found  on  Baddow  Hall  Common, <f[  near  Danbury,  Essex,  one 
of  which  was  6  inches  long  and  3^  inches  broad  at  the  edge,  seem  to  have 
been  of  this  character. 

I  have  seen  specimens  of  the  same  type  from  Taxley  Fen,  Hunting- 
donshire (4£  inches  long),  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  S.  Sharp,  F.S.A. ;  and 
from  Eaisthorp,  near  Fimber,  Yorkshire,  in  that  of  Messrs.  Mortimer. 

In  Canon  Greenwell's  collection  are  three  (about  4£  inches)  found  at 
Newbiggin,  Northumberland,  and  others  (about  5^-  inches)  from  Alnwick 
and  Wallsend.  A  specimen  in  the  same  collection  (5^  inches),  found  at 
Knapton,  Yorkshire  (E.  K.),  has  a  slight  ridge  along  the  centre  of  the 
sides,  which,  as  well  as  the  angles  between  the  faces  and  the  sides,  is 
indented  with  a  series  of  slight  hammer  marks  at  regular  intervals. 

Mr.  Wallace  of  Distington,  Whitehaven,  has  one  (6£  inches)  from 
Hango  Hill,  Castleton,  Isle  of  Man. 

I  have  myself  oelts  of  the  same  class  from  the  Cambridge  Fens 
(4 1  inches) ;  Sherburn  Carr,  Yorkshire  (5|-  inches),  found  with  another 
nearly  similar ;  Swansea  (4£  inches,  much  decayed);  and  near  Pont  Caradog, 
Brithder,  Glamorganshire  (6|  inches),  found  with  three  others,  and  given 
to  me  by  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  in  whose  collection  the  others  are 
preserved. 

A  few  of  these  flat  plain  celts  have  been  found  in  France.  Some  from 
the^departments  of  Doubs  and  Jura  are  engraved  by  Chantre.**  One  from 
Normandy,  ft  figured  by  the  Abbe  Cochet,  seems  to  show  some  trace  of  a 
transverse  ridge.  One  from  the  Seine  is  engraved  in  the  "  Dictionnaire 
Archeologique  de  la  Gaule."  Another  was  found  in  Finistere.JJ  Others 
are  in  the  Museum  at  Narbonne§§  and  elsewhere.  The  form  is  also 
found  in  Spain,  both  in  bronze  and  what  is  apparently  copper.  I  have 
specimens  from  the  Ciudad  Real  district. 

The  plain  flat  form  like  Fig.  2  is  also  occasionally  found  in  Germany. 
One  from  Ackenbach,  near  Homberg,  is  figured  by  Schreiber.|||| 

With  nearly  straight  sides  like  Fig.  27,  the  form  is  not  uncommon  in 
Hungary.  Some  of  these  are  very  thin. 

Others  of  nearly  the  same  form,  but  thicker,  have  been  found  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Atlantic  in  Mexico,  and  many  of  the  copper  celts  of 
North  America  are  also  of  the  plain  flat  type  with  an  oblong  section. 
This  circumstance  to  my  mind  rather  proves  that  the  form  is  the  simplest, 
and  therefore  that  most  naturally  adopted  for  hatchets,  than  that  there 
was  of  necessity  any  intercourse  between  the  countries  in  which  it  has 
prevailed. 

Many  of  the  flat  celts  are  ornamented  in  a  more  or  less  artistic 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  179.  t  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  158. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  44.  §  P.  S.  A.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  251. 

||  Vol.  v.  pi.  vii.  i.  p.  106.  IT  Arch.,  vol.  ix.  p.  378. 

**  PI.  ii.  1,  2,  3.  ft  "  La  Seine  Inf.,"  p.  552. 

H  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  iv.  p.  525.  §§  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  2,  3. 

III!  "Die  ehernen  Streitkeile  "  (1842),  Taf.  i.  1. 


44 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS 


[CHAP.  III. 


manner  on  the  faces,  or  the  sides,  or  on  both ;  but  before  pro- 
ceeding to  notice  any  of  them,  it  will  be  well  to  mention  another 
variety  of  the  plain  celt,  in  which  the  faces,  instead  of  being  nearly 
flat  or  uniformly  convex,  slope  towards  either  end  from  a  trans- 
verse ridge  near  the  middle  of  the  blade.  This  ridge  is  never  very 
strongly  defined,  as  the  total  thickness  of  the  blade  from  ridge  to 
ridge  is  rarely  more  than  half  an  inch.  The  plain  variety  is  some- 
what rare  in  Britain,  but  one  ornamented  on  both  faces  will  be 
described,  under  Fig.  5,  and  an  Irish  example  is  shown  in  Fig.  35. 
A  large  doubly  tapering  celt  (8  inches)  was  found  at  East  Surby, 
Kushen,"*  Isle  of  Man.  Some  of  those  already  mentioned  partake 
of  this  character.  In  Hoare's  great  work  a  specimen  from  the 
Bush  Barrow,  Normanton,f  is  engraved  as  being  of  this  plain 
doubly  tapering  type ;  but  from  the  more  accurate  engraving 
given  by  Dr.  Thurnam  +  it  appears  that  this  instrument  has  flanges 
at  the  side,  like  Fig.  8,  and  must  therefore  be  spoken  of  later  on. 
I  now  proceed  to  consider  some  of.  the  flat  celts  ornamented 
with  patterns  probably  produced  by  punches,  as  will  subsequently 
be  mentioned.  The  first  which  I  ad- 
duce was  found  with  an  interment,  and 
the  ornamentation  is  so  slight  that  it 
is  a  question  whether  the  celt  ought 
not  to  rank  among  those  of  the  plain 
kind. 

The  late  Mr.  Thomas  Bateman  in  1845 
found  what  he  described  as  "  a  fine  bronze 
celt  of  novel  form  "  and  "  of  elegant  out- 
line "  near  the  head  of  a  contracted  skele- 
ton in  a  barrow  called  Moot  Low,§  about 
half-way  between  Alsop  Moor  and  Dove- 
dale,  Derbyshire.  "  It  was  placed  in  a 
line  with  the  body,  with  its  edge  up- 
wards." By  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Llewel- 
lynn  Jewitt,  F.S.A.,||  I  am  enabled  to 
give  a  figure  of  this  instrument  in  Fig.  3. 
As  will  be  seen,  it  has  slight  flanges 
along  the  sides,  and  the  upper  part  is 
ornamented  with  short  vertical  lines 
punched  in. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  4  was  found  in  Yorkshire,   and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.    The  patina  upon  it  has  been  somewhat  injured,  but 

*  "First  Rep.  Arch.  Comm.  I.  of  Man,"  pi.  iv.  2. 

t  "Ancient  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  202,  pi.  xxvi.  I  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  444. 

§  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  68.     "  Catal.,"  p.  75,  No.  18. 

||  "Grave-mounds,"  fig.  187. 


Fig.3.-MootLow. 


ORNAMENTED   ON   THE   FACES.  45 

the  ornamentation  upon  the  faces  is  in  places  very  well  preserved.  It 
consists  of  numerous  parallel  lines,  each  made  up  of  short  diagonal 
indentations  in  the  metal,  and  together  forming  the  pattern  which  will  be 
better  understood  from  the  figure  than  from  any  description.  The  sides 
are  ornamented  by  having  two  low  pyramidal  bosses  drawn  out  upon 
them,  leaving  a  long  concave  hexagonal  space  in  the  middle  between 


'Fig.  4.— Yorkshire. 


them.  This  celt  has  already  been  figured,  but  on  a  much  smaller  scale,  in 
the  "  Horse  Ferales."  * 

This  style  of  ornamentation  on  the  sides  is  more  common  on  Irish  than 
on  English  or  Scottish  celts.  One,  however,  5£  inches  long,  of  the  doubly 
tapering  form  with  lunate  edge,  having  the  central  portion  of  the  blade 
ornamented  with  a  series  of  lines  in  a  chevron  pattern,  and  having  the 
sides  worked  into  three  facets  of  a  pointed  oval  form,  was  found  at 
Whittington,f  Gloucestershire,  and  was  presented  by  Mr.  W.  L.  Law- 
rence, F.S.A.,  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  The  ornamentation  is  much 

*  PL  iv.  No.  4.  t  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  pp.  235,  250. 


46 


FLAT    AND    FLANGED   CELTS 


[CHAP.  III. 


like  that  on  Fig.  7,  but  between  the  ornamented  portion  of  the  blade 
and  the  edge  there  is  a  curved  hollow  facet,  the  ridge  below  which  runs 
nearly  parallel  with  the  edge. 

The  celt  shown  in  Fig.  5  might  perhaps  be  more  properly  placed  among 
the  flanged  celts,  as,  without  having  well- 
developed  flanges  along  the  sides,  there  is 
a  projecting  ridge  running  along  either 
margin  of  the  faces,  in  consequence  of  the 
sides  having  been  somewhat  chamfered,  or 
having  had  their  angles  beaten  down  by 
hammering.  It  was  found  on  Preston 
Down,  near  Weymouth,  Dorsetshire ;  but 
I  do  not  know  under  what  circumstances. 
It  has  become  thickly  coated  with  a  dark 
sage-green  patina,  which  has  in  places 
been  unfortunately  knocked  off.  The 
beautiful  original  ornamentation  of  the 
celt  has  been  admirably  preserved  b}r  the 
patina.  The  greater  part  of  the  surface 
has  been  figured  with  a  sort  of  grained 
pattern  like  morocco  leather,  probably  by 
means  of  a  punch  in  form  like  a  narrow 

1 1  ';.?  k^,«  blunt  chisel.     The  faces  of  the  blade  are 

!j't\'\  '  ,W  not  flat,  but  taper  in  both  directions  from 

/Mjj|f^  .'Jft  a  ridge  rather  more  than  half-way  up  the 

ifflHi'   i|i|i||iiiMTnT^  blade.     Along  the  lower  side  of  this  some- 

what curved  ridge,  and  again  about  an 
inch  above  the  cutting  edge,  a  belt  of 
chevrons  has  been  punched  in,  having  the 
appearance  of  a  plaited  band.  Below  the 
lower  band  the  surface  has  been  left 
smooth  and  unornamented,  so  that  grind- 
ing the  edge  would  not  in  any  way  injure  the  pattern.  The  upper  part  of 
the  blade  has  at  the  present  time  exactly  the  appearance  of  dark  green 
morocco  with  "blind-tooling"  upon  it.  No  doubt  many  blades  which 
were  originally  ornamented  after  the  same  fashion  as  this  specimen  have 
now,  through  oxidation  or  the  accidental  destruction  of  the  patina,  lost 
all  traces  of  their  original  decoration.  On  this,  where  the  patina  has 
been  destroyed,  nothing  can  be  seen  of  the  graining. 

I  have  a  flat  celt  from  Mildenhall,  Suffolk  (6  inches),  in  form  like  Fig. 
6,  the  greater  part  of  the  surface  of  which  has  been  grained  in  a  similar 
manner,  though  the  graining  is  now  almost  obliterated. 

In  the  collection  of  the  Duke  of  Northumberland*  is  a  large  celt  which 
appears  to  be  of  the  flat  kind,  with  the  side  edges  "  slightly  recurved," 
and  with  the  surface  "elaborately  worked  with  chevrony  lines  and  orna- 
ments which  may  have  been  partly  produced  by  hammering."  It  was 
found  in  Northumberland. 

Another  belonging  to  James  Kendrick,  Esq.,  M.D.,  found  at  Eisdon,f 
near  Warrington,  is  described  as  being  "  ornamented  with  punched  lines 
in  a  very  unusual  manner."  Another,  of  which  a  bad  representation 
from  one  of  Dr.  Stukeley's  drawings  is  given  in  the  Archceologia,  is  said 


Fig.  5.-W, 


*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  363. 


t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  159. 


ORNAMENTED   ON    THE    FACES.  47 

to  have  been  found  in  the  long  barrow  at  Stonehenge.*  One  4£  inches 
long,  the  faces  ornamented  with  a  number  of  longitudinal  cuts,  was  found 
near  Sidmouth.f 

In  some  instances  the  faces  of  the  celts  have  been  wrought  into  a  series 
of  slightly  hollowed  facets.  One  such  from  Head,  Lancashire,  is  in  the 
British  Museum,  and  is  engraved  as  Fig.  6.  The  central  space  between 
the  two  series  of  ridges  and  also  the  margins  of  the  faces  are  ornamented 
with  shallow  chevrons  punched  in.  The  sides  have  been  hammered  into 


Fig.  6.— Read. 


three  facets,  and  this  has  produced  slight  flanges  at  the  margins  of  the 
faces.  These  facets  are  ornamented  with  diagonal  lines.  This  celt  was 
found  with  two  others,  apparently  of  the  same  kind,  and  is  described  and 
engraved  in  Whitaker's  "History  of  the  Original  Parish  of  Whalley."| 
The  author  says  that  these  instruments  were  from  9  to  12  inches  long,  and 
had  a  broad  and  narrow  end,  but  had  neither  loops,  grooves,  nor  any 
other  contrivance  by  which  they  could  be  fixed  in  a  shaft,  or  indeed 
applied  to  any  known  use.  That  in  the  British  Museum  was  obtained 

*  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  135,  pi.  viii.  14.  t  Trans.  Devon  Assoc.,  vol.  v.  p.  82. 

J  3rd  edit.,  4to,  1818,  pi.  ii. 


48 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP.  in. 


by  the  late  Mr.  Charles  Towneley.      The  two  others  were  formerly  in 
the  collections  of  the  Kev.  Dr.  Milles,  P.8.A.,  and  of  Dr.  Whitaker. 

I  now  come  to  the  flanged  celts,  or  those  which  have  projecting 
ledges  along  the  greater  part  of  each  side  of  the  faces,  produced 
either  by  hammering  the  metal  at  the  sides  of  the  blades,  or 
in  the  original  casting.  As  has  already  been  observed,  some  of 
the  celts  which  have  been  described  as  belonging  to  the  flat 
variety  might,  with  almost  equal  propriety,  have  been  classed  as 
flanged  celts,  as  the  mere  hammering  of  the  sides  with  a  view  to 
render  them  smooth  or  to  produce  an  ornament  upon  them 
"  upsets  "  the  metal,  and  produces  a  thickening  along  the  margin 
which  almost  amounts  to  a  flange. 

In  the  celt  shown  in  Fig.  7  the  flanges  are  very  slight,  and  are  in  all 
probability  merely  due  to  the  hammering  necessary  to  produce  the  kind 

of  cable  pattern  or  spiral  fluting  which  is 
seen  in  the  side  view.  The  faces  taper 
in  each  direction  from  a  transverse 
ridge,  and  the  blade  for  some  distance 
below  this  is  ornamented  with  an  incuse 
chevron  pattern.  The  blade  towards 
the  edge  and  above  the  ridge  is  left 
plain.  This  specimen  was  found  in 
Suffolk,  but  I  do  not  know  the  exact 
locality.  It  is  in  my  own  collection. 

Among  nineteen  bronze  celts  dis- 
covered about  the  year  1845  on  the  pro- 
perty of  Mr.  Samuel  Ware,  F.S.A.,  at 
Postlingford  Hall,*  near  Clare,  Suffolk, 
were  several  of  this  class,  two  of  which 
(6£  and  5£  inches),  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  are  figured  in  the  Archceo- 
logia.  One  of  them  is  ornamented  with 
a  chevron  pattern,  covering  the  part  of 
the  blade  usually  decorated,  and  having 
vertical  lines  running  through  the 
centres  of  the  chevrons,  and  through 
the  junction  of  their  bases.  The  other 
is  ornamented  with  a  series  of  curved  parallel  lines  running  across  the 
blade,  as  on  Fig.  16.  They  have  a  slight  projection  or  ridge  at  the 
thickest  part  of  the  blade,  as  have  also  two  that  are  not  ornamented, 
which  likewise  were  presented  by  Mr.  Ware  to  the  British  Museum. 

Another  celt  of  this  kind  (4f  inches)  was  found  with  a  bronze  spear-head 
having  loops  at  the  lower  part  of  the  blade  in  the  Kilcot  Wood,  f  near 
Newent,  Gloucestershire.  The  faces  are  ornamented  with  parallel  rows 

*  Proc.   Soc.  Ant,,  1st  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  83 ;  Arch.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.   496 ;  Prof.  Bury  and 
West  Suf.  Arch.  Inst.,  vol.  i.  p.  26. 
t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  369. 


Fig.  7. -Suffolk 


FLANGED    CELTS    FROM    ARRETON   DOWN. 


49 


of  short  diagonal  lines,  bounded  at  the  lower  end  by  a  double  series  of 
dots,  and  a  transverse  row  of  diagonal  lines. 

In  the  remarkable  hoard  of  bronze  instruments  discovered  on  Arreton 
Down,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  about  the  year  1735,  were,  besides  the  spear- 
heads and  dagger  blades,  of  which  mention  will  be  made  in  subsequent 
chapters,  four  of  these  flanged  celts.  Of  these  one  (6^  inches)  was  orna- 
mented both  on  the  face  and  sides,  but  is  at  present  only  known  from  a 
drawing  in  an  album  belonging  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 


Fig.  8. — Arreton  Down 


The  others  were  plain,  and  of  one  of  them  a  woodcut  is  given  in  the 
Archaologia,*  which  by  the  permission  of  the  Council  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries  is  here  reproduced  as  Fig.  8.  It  is  8  inches  in  length,  and  is 
one  of  the  largest  of  its  class  in  the  British  Museum.  As  will  be  seen,  the 
blade  itself  is  of  the  doubly  tapering  kind.  The  others  are  4£  and  4f 
inches  long.  They  are  said  to  have  been  found  arranged  in  regular 
order,f  and,  as  Mr.  Franks  has  suggested,  may  possibly  have  been  the 
store  deposited  by  some  ancient  founder,  which  he  was  unable  to  reclaim 
from  its  hiding-place. 


*  Vol.  xxxvi.  p.  329. 


t  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113. 


50 


FLAT   AND    FLANGED    CELTS. 


[CHAP.  in. 


In  Figs.  9  and  10*  are  shown  two  more  of  these  doubly  tapering 
flanged  celts,  which  were  found  in  the  parish  of  Plymstock,f  Devonshire, 
about  a  mile  east  of  Preston.  They  lay  beneath  a  flat  stone  at  a  depth  of 
about  two  feet  below  the  surface,  together  with  fourteen  other  celts,  three 
daggers,  one  of  which  is  given  as  Fig.  301,  a  spear-head  or  dagger, 
shown  in  Fig.  327,  and  a  narrow  chisel  (Fig.  190).  All  the  sixteen 


Fig.  9. — Plymstock. 


Fig.  10.— Plymstock.        | 


celts  are  of  the  same  general  type,  but  vary  in  length  from  3f  inches  to 
6f  inches.  The  extent  of  the  flanges  or  wings  also  varies,  and  in  some 
they  project  considerably,  and  are  brought  with  great  precision  to  a  sharp 
edge.  At  the  narrow  or  butt  end,  the  late  Mr.  Albert  Way,  who  described 
the  hoard,  noticed  a  peculiar  slight  groove  extending  only  as  far  as  the 

*  For  the  loan  of  these  cuts  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S. 

t  Arch.  Joum.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346.  The  scale  of  the  cuts  is  there  erroneously  stated  to  be  \. 


FLANGED    CELTS    FOUND    IN    BARROWS.  51 

commencement  of  the  lateral  flanges.  The  character  of  the  groove  is 
shown  in  the  portion  of  the  side  view  given  with  each  figure.  Mr.  Way 
and  Mr.  Franks  thought  that  the  narrow  end  of  the  celt,  when  produced 
from  the  mould,  had  been  slightly  bifid,  and  that  the  little  cleft  had  been 
closed  by  the  hammer.  My  own  impression  is  that  these  marks  are 
merely  the  result  of  "  drawing  down  "  the  narrow  ends  with  the  hammer 
after  their  sides  had  been  somewhat  "upset"  or  expanded  by  hammering 
out  the  side  flanges. 

The  sides  of  some  of  these  celts  have  been  hammered  so  as  to  present 
three  longitudinal  facets ;  others  have  the  sides  simply  rounded.  One  of 
the  most  interesting  features  of  this  discovery  is  its  analogy  with  that 
already  mentioned  as  having  been  made  at  Arreton  Down.  The  greater 
number  of  the  objects  found  at  Plymstock  were  given  by  the  Duke  of 
Bedford  to  the  British  Museum,  and  the  remainder  to  the  Exeter  Museum. 

Four  or  five  celts  with  slight  side  flanges  were  found  in  the  Wiltshire 
barrows  by  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare.  The  largest  of  these  (6J  inches  long  and 
2£  inches  broad)  was  found  in  1808,  in  a  tumulus  known  as  the  Bush 
Barrow,  near  Normanton.*  The  following  are  the  particulars  of  this 
discovery: — On  the  floor  of  the  barrow  was  the  skeleton  of  a  tall  man 
lying  from  south  to  north.  Near  his  shoulders  lay  the  celt,  which  owes 
its  great  preservation  to  having  been  inserted  in  a  handle  of  wood.  About 
eighteen  inches  south  of  the  head  were  several  bronze  rivets,  intermixed 
with  wood  and  thin  pieces  of  bronze,  which  were  regarded  as  the  remains 
of  a  shield.  Near  the  right  arm  were  a  large  dagger  of  bronze  and  a 
spear-head  of  the  same  metal,  fully  13  inches  long.  The  handle  of  this 
dagger,  marvellously  inlaid  with  pins  of  gold,  will  be  described  in  a 
subsequent  chapter.  On  the  breast  of  the  skeleton  was  a  large  lozenge- 
shaped  plate  of  gold,  ornamented  with  zigzag  and  other  patterns,  and 
near  it  were  some  other  gold  ornaments,  some  bone  rings,  and  an  oval 
perforated  stone  mace,  the  representation  of  which  I  have  reproduced  in 
my  "Ancient  Stone  Implements." 

We  have  here  an  instance  of  bronze  weapons  occurring  associated 
with  those  of  stone  and  with  gold  ornaments.  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare  has 
recorded  some  other  cases.  In  a  bell-shaped  barrow  near  Wilsford,f  at 
the  feet  of  the  skeleton  of  a  tall  man,  he  found  a  massive  hammer  of  a 
dark-coloured  stone,  some  objects  of  bone,  a  whetstone  with  a  groove  in 
the  centre,  and  a  bronze  celt  with  small  lateral  flanges  3J  inches  long. 
These  were  accompanied  by  a  very  curious  object  of  twisted  bronze, 
apparently  a  ring  about  4^  inches  in  diameter,  having  a  tang  pierced  with 
four  rivet  holes  for  fixing  in  a  handle.  In  the  ring  itself,  opposite 
the  tang,  is  a  long  oval  hole,  through  which  passes  one  of  three  circular 
links  forming  a  short  chain. 

In  a  barrow  on  Overton  Hill,}  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare  found  a  contracted 
skeleton  buried  either  in  the  trunk  of  a  tree  or  on  a  plank  of  wood.  Near 
the  head  were  a  small  celt  of  this  kind,  an  awl  with  a  handle  (Fig.  227), 
and  a  small  dagger,  or,  as  he  terms  it,  a  "lance-head." 

The  occurrence  of  celts  of  this  character  is  not  limited  to  interments  by 
inhumation.  In  another  barrow  of  the  Wilsford  group  Sir  E.  C.  Hoare 
found,  in  a  cist  2  feet  deep,  a  pile  of  burnt  bones,  an  ivory  (?)  pin,  a  rude 

»  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  202,  pi.  xxvi ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  444. 
t  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.i.  p.  209,  pi.  xxix. 

i  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  ii.  90  ;  Gran.  Brit.,  xi.  7,  where  these  objects  are  figured. 
E  2 


52 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP.  III. 


ring  of  bone,  and  a  small  bronze  celt,  also  with  side  flanges,  and  only 
2£  inches  long. 

Among  other  specimens  of  this  form  of  celt  may  be  cited  one  found  on 
Plumpton  Plain,*  near  Lewes,  Sussex,  now  in  the  British  Museum  ;  one 
(4  inches)  found  near  Dover  in  1856;  and  one  (6J  inches)  from  Wye 
Down,  Kent,  both  in  the  Mayer  collection  at  Liverpool.  Canon  Green- 
well,  F.R.S.,  has  one  (3£  inches)  from  March,  Cambridgeshire. 

Flanged  celts  much  like  Fig.  9  have  been  found  in  France.  Some 
from  Haute-Saone,f  Rhone,  and  Compiegne  J  (Oise)  have  been  figured.  I 
have  specimens  from  Evreux  (Eure),  Amiens  (Somme),  and  Lyons. 
The  type  also  occurs  in  Italy  §  in  some  abundance ;  it  is  found  more  rarely 
in  Germany.  ||  Examples  from  Denmark  are  figured  by  Schreiber,*ff 
Segested,**  and  Madsen.ff  The  form  also  occurs  in  Sweden.^ 

A  peculiar  form  of  flanged  celt  is  shown  in  Fig.  11.  The  flanges 
extend  as  usual  nearly  to  the  edge,  but  at  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  are 


Rg.  11.— Thames. 


Fig.  12.— Norfolk. 


set  down  so  as  to  project  still  farther  over  the  faces,  though  at  a  lower 
level.  The  original  was  found  in  the  Thames,  §§  and  is  the  property  of 
Mr.  T.  Layton,  F.S.A. 

A  small  example,  ornamented  with  a  fluted  pattern  on  the  sides  and  with 
the  blade  slightly  tapering  in  each  direction  from  a  central  ridge,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  12.  The  original  was  found  in  Norfolk,  and  is  in  the  collection  of 
Mr.  E.  Fitch,  F.S.A. 

Another,  decorated  with  a  fluted  chevron  pattern  on  the  sides,  and  with 
indented  herring-bone  and  chevron  patterns  on  the  faces,  is  given  in 
Fig.  13.  This  example  was  found  in  Dorsetshire,  and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  In  the  same  collection  is  a  beautiful  celt  with  side 

*  Sass.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  268. 

t  Chantre,  "Album,"  pi.  iv.  2,  3.     "  Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.  p.  352. 

Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaulc.     Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xiii.     PI.  i.  fig.  EL. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  100.     Lubbock's  "Preh.  Times,"  p.  28,  fig.  17. 

Lisch,  "Fred.  Francisc.,"  tab.  xiii.  7.  H  Die  ehernen  Streitkeile,  Taf.  i.  5. 

*  "  Oldsag.  fra  Broholm,"  pi.  xxiii.  6.  ft  "  Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xxi.  6. 

;  Montelius,  "  La  Suede  preh.,"  fig.  42.     "  Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.  p.  292. 
fret.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  428,  pi.  i.fig.  1. 


DECORATED    FLANGED    CELTS.  53 

flanges  found  near  Brough,  Westmoreland  (6f  inches),  which  has  the 


Fig.  13.— Dorsetshire. 

portion  of  the  blade  below  the  thickest  part  ornamented  with  a  lozengy 

matted  pattern  much  like  that  on 

Fig.    51,   but    with  the    alternate 

lozenges  plain  and  hatched.     The 

hatching  on  some  of  the  lozenges 

is  from  left  to  right,  on  others  the 

reverse. 

A  flanged  celt  of  unusual  type, 
the  sides  curiously  wrought  and 
engraved  or  punched,  and  the 
faces  exhibiting  a  pattern  of  che- 
vrony  lines,  is  shown  in  Fig.  14. 
It  was  found  near  Lewes,*  Sussex, 
and  is  the  property  of  Sir  H. 
Shiffner,  Bart. 

An  example  of  nearly  the  same 
kind  is  shown  in  Fig.  15,  from  a 
celt  found  in  the  Fens  near  Ely, 
and  now  in  the  museum  of  Mr. 
Marshall  Fisher,  of  that  city.  Both 
faces  are  ornamented  below  the 
thickest  part  with  broad  indented 
lines,  vertical  and  transverse,  as 
will  be  best  seen  in  the  figure. 


Fig.  15.— Ely. 


*  Arch,  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  167.     Chichester  vol.  of  Arch  fnst.,  p.   62,  whence  this 
cut  is  taken. 


54 


FLAT   AND    FLANGED    CELTS. 


[CHAP.  III. 


The  sides  are  hammered  into  three  facets,  each  having  a  series  of  diagonal 
grooves  wrought  in  them.  The  two  left-hand  facets  on  each  side  have 
the  grooves  running  upwards  from  left  to  right ;  on  the  third  facet  they 
run  downwards,  but  at  a  much  less  inclination.  The  punch  with  which 
the  grooves  and  ornaments  were  produced  has  also  been  employed  along 
the  inner  angle  of  the  flanges. 

A  pretty  little  celt,  ornamented  with  transverse  ridges  in  the  lower  part, 
is  shown  in  Fig.  16.  The  original  was  found  at  Barrow,  Suffolk. 

The  Eev.  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  possesses  one  (4|  inches)  found  at 
Horncastle,  Lincolnshire,  the  faces  of  which  are  decorated  in  a  nearly 


Fig.  16. — Barrow. 


Fig.  17.-IJ88. 


similar  manner ;  but  the  sides  show  a  cable  pattern,  and  there  is  a  slight 
central  ridge  on  the  faces. 

A  much  larger  specimen  (6£  inches),  found  near  the  Menai  Bridge,* 
Anglesea,  has  also  cabled  sides,  but  the  grooves  on  the  faces  are  straighter 
and  wider  apart. 

A  Danish  celt,  ornamented  in  a  similar  manner,  is  engraved  by 
Madsen.f 

The  celt  shown  in  Fig.  17  is  of  somewhat  the  same  character,  but  the 
transverse  lines  are  closer  and  not  continuous.  They  have  evidently  been 
produced  by  means  of  a  small  blunt  punch,  with  the  aid  of  a  hammer. 
The  original  was  found  at  Liss,J  near  Petersfield,  Hants,  and  is  now  in 
the  British  Museum. 

Flanged  celts  decorated  on  the  faces  are  of  rare  occurrence  in  France. 
One  of  narrow  proportions,  and  ornamented  with  lozenges  and  zigzags, 
was  found  at  Mareuil-sur-Ourcq  §  (Oise). 


*  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  207. 

J  Arch.  Jcurn.,  vol.  xii.  p.  278,  xviii.  p.  167. 


t  "  Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xxi.  2. 

{  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 


CASTINGS    FOR    FLANGED   CELTS. 


55 


The  only  instance  known  to  me  in  which  the  rough  castings 
destined  to  be  wrought  into  this  form  of  celt  have  been  found  in 
Britain  is  one  recorded  in  the  Archceologia  Cambrensis  *  by  the 
Rev.  E.  L.  Barnwell.  At  the  meeting  of  the  Cambrian  Archseo- 
logical  Association  at  Wrexham,  Sir  R.  A.  Cunliffe,  Bart.,  exhibited 
what  had  evidently  been  the  stock  in  trade 
of  an  ancient  bronze -founder  or  merchant. 
It  had  been  found  at  Rhosnesney,  near  Wrex- 
ham, and  consisted  of  six  palstaves,  all  from 
the  same  mould,  another  somewhat  slighter 
and  broken  in  two,  the  blade  of  a  small 
dagger,  three  castings  for  flanged  celts,  and 
the  shank  of  a  fourth — all  of  them  rough  as 
they  came  from  the  mould.  The  cut  given 
of  one  of  the  last-mentioned  castings  is  here 
reproduced  on  a  smaller  scale  as  Fig.  18.  It 
will  be  seen  that  a  broad  runner  is  left  at  the 
butt  end,  which  was  probably  destined  to  be 
broken  off;  the  sides  would  also  be  ham- 
mered, so  as  to  increase  the  prominence  of  the 
flanges ;  and  the  whole  would  be  planished  by 
hammering  and  grinding.  All  the  specimens 
have  the  appearance  of  having  been  washed 
over  with  tin,  but  this  deposit  of  tin  upon 
the  surface  may,  I  think,  be  due  to  some  chemical  action  which 
has  gone  on  since  the  bronze  was  buried  in  the  ground,  and  may 
not  have  been  intentionally  produced. 

A  casting  for  a  longer  flanged  celt  found  at  Vienne  (Isere)  has 
been  figured  by  Chantre.f 

Turning  now  to  the  flat  and  flanged  celts  discovered  in  Scotland, 
I  may  remark  that  the  instruments  of  the  flat  form  appear  to  be 
comparatively  more  abundant  in  that  country  than  in  England 
and  Wales, 

In  Fig.  1 9  is  shown  a  remarkably  well-preserved  specimen  in  my  own 
collection,  which  is  said  to  have  been  found  near  Drumlanrig,  Dumfries- 
shire. The  sides  present  two  longitudinal  facets  at  a  low  angle  to  each 
other.  In  hammering  these  the  margin  of  the  faces  has  been  somewhat 
raised  ;  they  are  otherwise  smooth  and  devoid  of  ornament.  Other  speci- 
mens have  three  facets  on  the  sides.  Instruments  of  much  the  same 
character  have  been  found  near  Biggar  J  (6£  inches),  Culter§  (5J  inches), 


Fig.  18.— Ehosnesney. 


*  4th  8.,  Tol.  vi.  p.  70.    Cat.  p.  1. 

£  Arch,  Ansoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  20. 


"Album,"  pi.  iii.  1. 
Ibid. 


56 


FLAT    AND   FLANGED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  in. 


both  in  Lanarkshire  ;  on  the  farm  of  Colleonard,*  near  Banff  (found  with 
three  which  were  ornamented) ;  at  Sluie  on  the  Findhorii,f  Morayshire 

(two,  6  inches)  ;  near 
Abernethy,J  Perth- 
shire (4  inches  across 
face) ;  near  Ardgour 
House,  §  Inverness- 
shire  (5f  inches)  ; 
the  Hill  of  Fortrie 
of  Balnoon,||  Inver- 
keithney,  Banffshire 
(5£  inches  long) ;  Ka- 
velston,^[  near  Edin- 
burgh (7  inches) ; 
Cobbinshaw,  Mid- 
calder,  Edinburgh 
(4f  inches),  in  my 
own  collection.  One 
found  in  the  Moss 
of  Cree,**  near  Wig- 
ton  in  G-alloway,  has 
been  mentioned  by 
Wilson,  and  is  en- 
graved in  the  Ayr 
and  Wigton  Collec- 
tions.^ Others  from 
Inch  and  Leswalt, 
Wigtonshire,  have 
also  been  figured. \\ 


Fig.  19.— Drumlanrig.       J 


Some  of  these 
blades,  and  not- 
ably the  celts  from 
Sluie,  the  Hill  of  Fortrie  of  Balnoon,  and  Ravelston,  have  been 
thought  to  be  tinned.  An  interesting  paper  on  the  subject  has 
been  written  by  Dr.  J.  Alexander  Smith  and  Dr.  Stevenson 
Macadam.  §§  Their  conclusion  is  rather  in  favour  of  the  celts 
having  been  intentionally  tinned,  so  as  to  protect  them  from 
oxidation  and  the  influence  of  the  weather.  I  think,  how- 
ever, that  the  tinned  appearance  of  the  castings  for  celts  from 
Rhosnesney  affords  a  strong  argument  against  this  feature  being 
the  result  of  intentional  tinning  ;  for,  if  so,  that  metal  would 


t  P.  8.  A.  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  187,  and  ix.  p.  431. 
§  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ix.  p.  182. 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  245. 

J  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  380. 

||   P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ix.  p.  430. 

IT  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  App.  II.  p.  32;  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ix.  p.  431. 

**  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  2nd  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  381. 

t+  Vol.  ii.  p.  6.  H  Op.  cit.,  p.  7. 

§$  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ix.  p.  428. 


FOUND    IN    SCOTLAND. 


57 


have  been  applied  to  the  blades  after  they  had  been  wrought  and 
ground  into  shape,  and  not  to  the  rough  castings,  from  the  surface 
of  which  the  tin  would  be  certainly  removed  in  the  process  of 
finishing  the  blades.  A  bronze  hammer  from  France  in  my  col- 
lection has  all  the  appearance  of  having  been  intentionally  tinned, 
even  partly  within  the  socket ;  but  in  this  case  the  bronze  appears 
unusually  rich  in  tin,  which  was  probably  added  in  order  to 
increase  the  hardness  of  the  metal,  and  some  considerable  altera- 
tion of  structure  has  taken  place  within  the  body  of  the  metal,  as 
the  surface  is  fissured  in  all  directions,  something  like  "crackle 
china." 

In  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh  are  other  flat  celts,  some  of 
them  with  slight  flanges  at  the  edge,  from  Eildon,  Roxburghshire ;  Inch- 
nadamff,  Sutherlandshire ; 
Dunino,  Fifeshire;  Vogrie 
and  Ratho,  Midlothian ; 
Kintore  and  Tarland, 
Aberdeenshire ;  and  other 
places. 

Some  celts  of  this  form, 
but  with  slight  side 
flanges,  have  been  found 
in  the  South  of  France.* 

A  celt  of  this  class,  also 
in  the  Museum  at  Edin- 
burgh, is  probably  the 
largest  ever  found  in  the 
United  Kingdom.  ItislSf 
inches  in  length,  9  inches 
in  its  greatest  breadth,  but 
only  If  inch  at  the  nar- 
row end.  Its  thickness  is 
about  f  inch  in  the  middle 
of  the  blade,  and  its  weight 
is  5  Ibs.  7  ozs.  It  is  shown 
on  a  scale  of  rather  more 
than  one-fourth  in  Fig.  20, 
for  the  use  of  the  woodcut 
of  which  I  am  indebted  to 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries 
of  Scotland.  It  was  found 
in  digging  a  drain  on  the 
farm  of  Lawhead,f  on  the 
south  side  of  the  Pentland  A  T  ,  , 

TT*n  -r-i  i  *       t  -i  Jiff.  20. — JjftWlldftCU 

Hills,  near  Edinburgh. 

Some  of  the  Scottish  celts,  both  flat  and  doubly  tapering,  are  ornamented 
on  the  faces.     One  with  four  raised  longitudinal  ribs,  and  two  with  a 


"  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  6,  7. 


f  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  105. 


58 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP.  in. 


series  of  short  incised  or  punched  lines  upon  their  faces,  were  among 
those  found  on  the  farm  of  Colleonard,*  Banff;  another  has  shallow 
flutings  on  the  blade ;  another,  E  22,  in  the  Catalogue  of  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh,  is  also  ornamented  with  incised  lines.  One  of 
those  from  Sluie,|  Morayshire,  is  cited  by  Wilson. 


The   tastefully   ornamented  celt  shown   in  Fig.  21    was    found  near 
Nairn,  and    is  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of   Antiquaries  of 

*  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  245. 

t  "Preh.  Ann.,"  2nd  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  381. 


DECORATED    SCOTTISH    SPECIMENS. 


59 


Scotland,  to  the  Council  of  which  I  am  indebted  for  the  use  of  the  cut. 
The  wreathed  lines  appear  to  have  been  produced  by  a  chisel-like  punch. 
The  ornamentation  of  both  faces  is  almost  exactly  similar. 

I  have  two  flat  celts,  both  said  to  have  been  found  near  Falkland,  Fife- 
shire,  one  of  which  (6f  inches)  has  had  grooves  about  half  an  inch  apart 
worked  in  the  faces  parallel  to  the  sides,  so  as  to  form  very  pointed 
chevrons  down  the  centre  of  the  blade.  The  other  (5  inches  long)  has 
had  broad  shallow  dents  about  £  inch  long  and  i  inch  apart  made  in  its 
faces,  so  as  to  form  a  herring-bone  pattern. 

The  doubly  tapering  celt  shown  in  Fig.  22  is  also  said  to  have  been 
found  near  Falkland.  Below  the  ridge  the  face  has  been  ornamented 


Fig.  22.— Falkland. 


Fig.  23.— Greenlees. 


with  parallel  belts  of  short,  narrow  indentations  arranged  longitudinally 
for  about  half  the  length  of  the  lower  face,  but  nearer  the  edge  trans- 
versely. The  sides  are  worked  into  three  longitudinal  facets. 

Of  Scottish  flanged  celts  resembling  Fig.  9,  the  following  may  be 
mentioned.  One  found  in  Peeblesshire  *  (5f  inches  long,  with  a  circular 
depression  on  one  face);  one  from  Longman, f  Macduff,  Banffshire  (3f 
inches  long). 

Another  of  the  same  class,  having  a  round  hole  at  the  upper  part  of  the 
blade,  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  Scotland,  and  is  engraved  by  Gordon. £ 

*  Engraved  in  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  pi.  vi.  4,  p.  21. 

t  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  41.  I  "Itin.  Septent.,"  p.  116,  pi.  1.  No.  1. 


60 


FLAT    AND    FLANGED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  in. 


A  celt  with  but  slightly  raised  flanges  and  peculiar  ornamentation  is 
shown  in  Fig.  23.  It  was  found  at  Greenlees,*  near  Spottiswoode, 
Berwickshire,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Lady  John  Scott.  There  is  a 
faintly  marked  stop-ridge,  above  which  the  blade  has  been  ornamented  by 
thickly  set  parallel  hammer  or  punch  marks.  The  sides  are  fluted  in  a 
cable  pattern.  Parallel  to  the  cutting  edge  are  three  slight  fluted  hollows, 
and  on  the  blade  above  are  segments  of  concentric  hollows  of  the  same 
kind,  forming  what  heralds  would  term  ' '  flanches ' '  on  the  blade.  Whether 
in  this  ornament  we  are  to  see  a  representation  of  the  "flanches"  of  the 
winged  palstave  like  Fig.  85,  such  as  is  so  common  on  socketed  celts,  or 
whether  it  is  of  independent  origin,  I  will  not  attempt  to  determine. 


Fig.  24.— Perth. 


Fig.  25.-Applegarth.        J 


A  flanged  celt  with  a  slight  stop-ridge,  having  the  sides  ornamented 
with  a  cable  pattern  and  the  faces  with  rows  of  triangles  alternately 
hatched  and  plain,  is  shown  in  Fig.  24.  The  original  was  found  near 
Perth,f  and  is  in  the  collection  of  the  Rev.  James  Beck,  F.S.A.  A  celt 
with  five  hatched  bands  surmounted  by  triangles,  and  with  the  sides  cable 
moulded,  though  found  in  Denmark,  +  much  resembles  this  Scottish  speci- 
men and  some  of  those  from  Ireland.  Another  with  similar  sides,  but 
with  the  lower  part  of  the  faces  ornamented  with  narrow  vertical  grooves, 
was  found  at  Applegarth,§  Dumfriesshire,  and  is  now  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh.  It  is  represented  in  Fig.  25. 

*  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  601.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  use  of 
this  cut. 

t  Proe.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  5. 

t  Madsen,  «  Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xxi.  7.     See  also  "Ant.  Tidsk.,"  18G1— 3,  p.  24. 

§  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii-  D.  602. 


FOUND    IN    IRELAND. 


61 


Another  decorated  celt  of  the  same  character,  though  with  different 
ornamentation,  is  shown  in  Fig.  26.  The  curved  bands  on  the  faces  are 
formed  of  lines  with  dots  between,  and  the  sides  have  a  kind  of  fern-leaf 
pattern  upon  them,  like  that  on  the  winged  celt  from  Trillick,  Fig.  98. 
The  original  was  found  at  Dams,  Balbirnie,*  Fifeshire. 

A  very  large  number  of  flat  celts  of  the  simplest  form  have  been 
found  in  Ireland.  So  numerous  are  they  that  it  would  only 
encumber  these  pages  were  I  to  attempt  to  give  a  detailed  account 
of  all  the  varieties,  and  of  all  the  localities  at  which  they  have  been 
found.  Sir  William  Wilde,  in  his  most  valuable  "  Catalogue  of  the 
Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,"  has  placed  on  record  a 


Fig.  26.— Dams. 


Fig.  27.— Ballinamallard. 


large  amount  of  information  upon  this  subject,  from  which  some 
of  the  facts  hereafter  mentioned  are  borrowed,  and  to  which  the 
reader  is  referred  for  farther  information.  Some  of  those  of  the 
rudest  manufacture  are  formed  "of  red,  almost  unalloyed  copper."t 
These  vary  in  length  from  about  2|  inches  to  6|  inches,  and  are 
never  ornamented. 

In  Fig.  27  is  shown  a  small  example  of  a  celt  apparently  of  pure 
copper,  which  was  found  at  Ballinamallard,  Co.  Fermanagh,  and  was 
kindly  added  to  my  collection  by  the  Earl  of  Enniskillen.  I  have  another, 
more  like  Fig.  28,  from  Ballybawn,  Co.  Cork,  presented  to  me  by  Mr. 
Robert  Day,  F.S.A. 

A  small  celt  of  this  character,  from  King's  County,  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  is  only  2£  inches  in  length. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  120.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  loan 
of  this  cut.  t  Wilde,  p.  361. 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP,  in 


Fig.  28  shows  a  very  common  form  of  Irish  celt,  in  this  instance  made 
of  bronze.     The  instruments  of  this  type  are  in  general  nearly  flat,  and 


Fig.  28.— North  of  Ireland.        |  Fig.  29.— Ireland.        \ 

without   any  marked   central  ridge,    such  as  is  to   be   observed  more 


Fig.  30.— Tipperary. 


frequently  on  the  longer  and  narrower  form,  of  which  a  remarkably  small 
specimen  from  the  collection  of  Mr.  E.  Day,  F.S.A.,  is  shown  in  Fig.  29.  In 


DECORATED    IRISH    SPECIMENS. 


63 


this  case  it  will  be  seen  that  the  blade  tapers  both  ways  from  a  low 
central  ridge.  Others  of  these  flat  celts  are  in  outline  more  like  Fig.  20. 
One  such,  in  the  museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  is  1 2  J  inches  long 
by  8  J  inches  broad,  and  weighs  nearly  5  Ibs.  One  in  the  British  Museum, 
which,  unfortunately,  is  somewhat  imperfect,  must  have  been  of  nearly 
the  same  size.  The  usual  length  of  the  celts  like  Fig.  28  is  from 
4  to  6  inches.  One  from  Greenmount,  Castle  Bellingham,  Co.  Louth,  is 
engraved  in  the  Archceological  Journal.* 

Occasionally  the  flat  surface  is  ornamented.  An  example  of  this  kind 
(7£  inches)  is  given  in  Fig.  30,  from  a  specimen  found  in  the  county  of 
Tipperary,f  and  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The  surface  has  the  patterns 
punched  in,  and  the  angles  between  the  faces  and  the  sides  are  slightly 
serrated.  Some  few  Irish  celts  are  slightly  fluted  on  the  face,  like  the 
English  specimen,  Fig.  6. 

Another  ornamented  celt  of  this  class,  from  my  own  collection,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  31.  On  this  the  roughly  worked  pattern  has  been  produced 


Fig.  31.— Ireland. 


by  means  of  a  long  blunt  punch,  or  possibly  by  the  pane  or  narrow  end 
of  a  hammer ;  but  it  is  far  more  probable  that  the  former  tool  was 
used  than  the  latter.  The  two  faces  are  nearly  alike,  and  the  sides  have 
been  hammered  so  as  to  produce  a  central  ridge  along  them. 

A  large  and  highly  ornamented  flat  celt  in  the  collection  of  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  is  shown  in  Fig.  32.  The  ornamentation  on  each 
face  is  the  same,  and  the  sides  have  been  hammered  so  as  to  produce  a 
succession  of  flat  lozenges  upon  them.  It  was  found  near  Connor,  Co. 
Antrim,  with  two  others  of  nearly  the  same  size,  one  of  which  was 

*  Vol.  xxvii.  p.  308. 

f  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  410.  For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  W. 
Franks,  F.R.S. 


64 


FLAT  AND  FLANGED  CELTS. 


[CHAP.  in. 


scraped  by  the  finder.  The  other  is  ornamented  with  a  cross-hatched 
border  along  the  margins,  and  three  narrow  bands  across  the  blade,  one 
cross-hatched,  one  of  triangles  alternately  hatched  and  plain,  and  one  with 
vertical  lines.  Parallel  with  the  cutting  edge,  which,  however,  has  been 
broken  off  in  old  times,  is  a  curved  band  of  alternate  triangles,  like  that 
across  the  centre  of  the  blade.  Much  of  the  surface  is  grained  by  vertical 
indentations,  and  the  sides  are  ornamented  like  those  of  Fig.  4. 


Fig.  32.— Connor.        i 

In  the  celts  tapering  in  both  directions  from  a  slight  transverse  ridge, 
the  sides  have  often  been  "upset"  by  hammering,  so  as  to  produce  a 
thickening  of  the  blade  at  the  margins  almost  amounting  to  a  flange. 
Not  unfrequently  a  pattern  is  produced  upon  the  sides,  as  in  Fig.  33, 
where  it  will  be  seen  that  the  median  ridge  along  the  sides  is  interrupted 
at  intervals  by  a  series  of  flat  lozenges.  The  faces  of  this  instrument 
below  the  ridge  have  been  neatly  hammered,  so  as  to  produce  a  kind  of 
grained  surface  not  unlike  that  of  French  morocco  leather.  This  speci- 


DECORATED    IRISH   SPECIMENS. 


65 


men,  which  is  unusually  large,  was  found  near  Clontarf,  Co.  Dublin. 
The  same  kind  of  decoration  occurs  on  the  sides  of  many  specimens  in  the 
museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy.* 

The  decoration  of  the  faces  often  extends  over  the  upper  part  of  the 
blade,  though,  when  hafted,  much  of  this  was  probably  hidden.  In 
Fig.  34,  borrowed  from  Wilde  (Fig.  248),  this  peculiarity  is  well  ex- 
hibited. The  sides  have  the  long  lozenges  upon  them,  like  those  on  the 
celt  last  described. 


Fig.  33.— Clontarf. 


Fig.  34.— Ireland.        J 


The  beautiful  specimen  shown  in  Fig.  35  was  presented  to  me  by  Mr. 
Eobert  Day,  F.S.A.  The  sides  have  in  this  case  a  kind  of  cable  pattern 
worked  upon  them.  The  ornamentation  of  the  faces  is  remarkable  as 
having  so  many  curved  lines  brought  into  it.  The  lower  part  of  the  blade 
has  two  shallow  flutings  upon  it,  approximately  parallel  to  the  edge. 

In  the  case  of  a  celt  of  much  the  same  form  and  size  (7£  inches),  which 
belonged  to  the  late  Eev.  Thomas  Hugo,  F.S.A.,  and  was  at  one  time 

*  See  Wilde,  Fig.  249.  266. 


66  FLAT    AND    FLANGED   CELTS.  [CHAP.  III. 

thought  to  have  been  found  in  the  Thames,*  it  is  the  upper  part  of  the 


Fig.  36.— Trim.        £ 

blade  that  is  decorated,  and  not  the  lower,  which  is  left  smooth.    There 
is  no  central  ridge,  but  the  upper  part  has  a  coarse  lozenge  pattern 


Fig.  37,-Ireland.       *  Fig.  38,-Ireland.        } 

hammered  upon  it,  the  centres  of  the  lozenges  being  roughly  hatched  with 
*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  295. 


CHARACTER    OF   THEIR   DECORATIONS.  67 

transverse  lines.  Possibly  this  roughening  may  have  assisted  to  keep  the 
blade  fast  in  the  handle,  though  in  producing  it  some  artistic  feeling  was 
brought  to  bear.  There  is  little  doubt  of  this  instrument  being  of  Irish 
origin. 

Other  celts,  like  Fig.  36,  have  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  plain  and 
the  lower  ornamented.  This  specimen  was  found  at  Trim,  Co.  Meath,  and 
is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.  It  will  be  observed  that 
even  the  cabled  fluting  of  the  sides  ceases  opposite  the  transverse  ridge. 

In  Figs.  37  and  38  are  shown  two  more  of  these  slightly  flanged 
ornamented  celts.  The  first  is  in  the  museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy, 
and  has  already  been  figured  by  Wilde  (Fig.  298).  The  lower  part  of  the 
blade  is  fluted  transversely  with  chevron  patterns  punched  in  along  the 
curved  ridges.  In  the  second,  which  was  presented  to  me  by  Dr.  Aquilla 
Smith,  M.E.I. A.,  there  is  a  fairly  well  defined  though  but  slightly  pro- 
j  ecting  curved  stop-ridge,  and  the  blade  is  decorated  by  boldly  punched 
lines,  forming  a  pattern  which  a  herald  might  describe  as  "per  saltire 
argent  and  azure."  The  cable  fluting  on  the  sides  is  beautifully  regular. 
The  Eev.  GK  W.  Brackenridge,  of  Clevedon,  possesses  a  longer  specimen 
(5f  inches),  found  at  Tullygowan,  near  Gracehill,  Co.  Antrim,  the  faces  of 
which  are  ornamented  with  a  nearly  similar  design.  Canon  Greenwell 
has  another  example  found  at  Carrickfergus,  Co.  Antrim. 

The  patterns  punched  upon  the  celts  of  this  type  show  a  great 
variety  of  form,  and  not  a  little  fertility  of  design  in  the  ancient 
artificers/''  Various  combinations  of  chevron  patterns  are  the  most 
frequent,  though  grained  surfaces  and  straight  lines  like  those  on 
Fig.  17  also  frequently  occur.  Sir  William  Wilde  describes  them 
as  hammered,  punched,  engraved,  or  cast.  Most  of  the  patterns 
were,  however,  produced  by  means  of  punches,  though  it  is  possible 
that  in  some  instances  the  other  processes  may  have  been  used. 

Figs.  39  to  43,  borrowed  from  Wilde  (Figs.  286  to  290),  show 
some  of  the  patterns  full  size.  The  punch  most  commonly 


Fig.  39.  Fig.  40.  Fig.  41.  Fig.  42.  Fig  43. 

employed  must  have  resembled  a  narrow  and  blunt  chisel ;  but  a 
kind  of  centre-punch,  producing  a  shallow  round  indentation,  was 
also  employed,  and  possibly  a  somewhat  curved  punch  like  a  blunt 
gouge.  In  some  cases  the  lines  between  the  punched  marks  are, 
according  to  Wilde,  engraved.  It  is,  however,  a  question  whether 
even  the  finest  lines  might  not  have  been  produced  by  a  chisel  used 
after  the  manner  of  a  punch.  What  were  probably  punches  for 

*  See  "Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  389  et  seq. ;  "  Vallancey,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  9. 
F  2 


FLAT    AND    FLANGED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  in. 


producing  such  patterns  have  been  found  in  some  English  hoards, 
as  will  subsequently  be  mentioned  ;  and  in  the  Fonderie  de  Lar- 
naud,  Jura,*  was  a  punch  with  an  engrailed  end  for  producing  a 
kind  of  "  milled "  mark,  either  in  the  mould  or  on  the  casting. 
Another,  with  concentric  circles,  seems  best  adapted  for  impressing 
the  loam  of  the  mould. 

Some  few  of  the  Irish  ornamented  celts  have  well-defined  stop- 
ridges  like  the  English  example,  Fig.  51  ;  but  these  will  be  more 
in  their  place  in  the  following  chapter.  One  or  two  other  forms 
may,  however,  be  here  mentioned,  though  they  approximate  closely 
to  the  chisels  described  in  subsequent  pages. 

One  of  these  is  shown  in  Fig.  44,  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  of  which 
is,  as  will  be  seen,  so  narrow,  and  the  instrument  itself  so  small  and  light, 


Fig.  44. — Armoy. 


Fig.  45.— Ireland. 


that  it  is  a  question  whether  it  should  not  be  regarded  as  a  chisel  or  paring- 
tool  rather  than  as  a  hatchet.  The  blade  tapers  both  ways,  and  the  inci- 
pient flange  is  more  fully  developed  above  the  ridge  than  below.  The 
original  was  found  at  Armoy,  Co.  Antrim.  It  is  much  broader  at  the 
cutting  edge  than  the  blade  from  Culham,  Fig.  55,  to  which  it  is  some- 
what allied. 

Another  Irish  form  of  celt,  or  possibly  chisel,  tapers  in  both  directions 
from  a  central  transverse  ridge,  near  which  there  are  lateral  projections 
on  the  blade,  as  if  to  prevent  its  being  driven  into  the  handle.  An 
example  of  this  kind,  from  the  museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,  is 
given  in  Fig.  45.  There  are  nine  or  ten  in  that  collection,  and  they  vary 
in  length  from  about  3f  to  8  inches.  Others  are  in  the  British  Museum, 
one  of  which  is  more  distinctly  tanged  than  the  figure,  and  the  stops  are 
formed  by  the  gradual  widening  out  of  the  blade,  which  again  contracts 
with  a  similar  curve,  and  once  more  widens  out  at  the  edge.  This  type 
is  also  known  in  France.  Other  varieties  of  this  form  are  described  in 
Chapter  VH. 

*  Chantre,  "  Album,"  pi.  1.  9,  10. 


WITH    LATERAL    STOPS. 


69 


A  doubly  tapering  blade  in  the  museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy, 
shown  in  Fig.  46,  has  a  slight  stop-ridge  on  the  face,  and  also  expands 
at  the  sides,  though  not  to  the  same  extent  as  the  plain  specimens  just 
mentioned.  It  is  ornamented  with  straight  and  curved  bands  formed  of 
chevron  patterns. 

A  double-edged  instrument,  also  in  the  museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy,  has  a  stop-ridge  on  one  of  the  faces  only,  as  shown  in  Fig.  47. 

An  instrument  of  the  same  form,  but  with  stops  at  the  sides  instead  of 
on  the  face,  4f  inches  long,  $  inch  broad  at  the  edges,  and  about  £  inch 
thick,  was  found  at  Farley  Heath,  Surrey,  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum. 

A  Danish  instrument  of  the  same  kind  is  figured  by  Worsaae.* 


Fig.  46.— Ireland. 


Fig.  47.— Ireland. 


Flat  celts  of  iron  with  lateral  stops  have  been  found  in  the  cemetery  at 
Hallstatt,  Austria,  as  well  as  winged  palstaves  and  socketed  celts  of  the 
same  metal. 

Some  of  the  thin  votive  hatchets  found  at  Dodona  f  are  of  the  same  form, 
and  are  significant  of  such  blades  having  been  in  actual  use  in  Greece. 

In  the  next,  chapter  are  described  the  celts  in  which  the  side 
flanges  have  become  more  fully  developed,  so  as  to  form  wings  to 
embrace  and  steady  the  handle,  and  the  central  ridge  has  grown 
into  a  well-marked  shoulder  against  which  the  end  of  the  haft 
could  rest. 


*  Nord.  Oldsnger,  No.  176. 


f  Carapanos,  "  Dodone,"  pi.  liv.  7. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

WINGED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 

To  any  one  who  has  examined  an  extensive  collection  of  the 
bronze  instruments  found  in  this  country  it  will  at  once  be 
apparent  that  in  the  class  of  celts  designed  to  be  fixed  in  some 
sort  of  haft,  and  not  themselves  socketed  for  the  reception  of  a 
handle,  there  is  a  wide  range  of  form.  Any  attempt,  however,  to 
divide  them  into  well-marked  classes  is  soon  seen  to  be  futile,  as 
there  is  found  to  be  a  gradual  transition  from  what  at  first  sight 
appears  to  be  a  well-marked  form  into  some  other  which  presents 
different  characteristics.  If,  for  instance,  we  take  the  side  flanges 
as  a  criterion,  we  find  them  ranging  from  a  mere  thickening  on  the 
margins  of  the  flat  celts  to  well-developed  flanges,  extending  along 
nearly  the  whole  blade ;  we  then  find  them  confined  to  the  upper 
part  of  the  instrument,  and  in  some  cases  of  great  lateral  extent, 
so  as  to  be  capable  of  being  hammered  over  to  form  a  kind  of 
semicircular  socket  on  each  side  of  the  blade.  In  other  cases  we 
find  that  the  flanges  have  some  part  of  their  apparent  projection 
due  to  a  diminution  in  the  thickness  of  the  portion  of  the  blade 
which  lies  between  them.  If  we  take  as  a  criterion  the  stop- 
ridge,  as  it  has  been  termed,  a  projecting  ridge  for  the  purpose  of 
preventing  the  blade  being  driven  too  far  into  its  wooden  handle, 
we  find  the  ridge  in  a  rudimentary  form  in  the  blades  which  taper 
both  ways  ;  next  as  a  slightly  raised  ridge  or  bead  running  across 
the  blade  ;  then  as  a  better-defined  ridge,  to  which,  at  last,  greater 
development  is  given  by  a  reduction  in  the  thickness  of  the  blade 
above  it.  The  presence  or  absence  of  a  loop  at  the  side  is,  no 
doubt,  a  good  differentiation,  but  as  this  is  a  mere  minor  accessory, 
and  two  celts  may  be  identical  in  other  respects  with  the  excep- 
tion of  one  being  provided  with  a  loop  and  the  other  being 
without  it,  it  does  not  materially  assist  in  the  classification  of  this 
group  of  instruments,  although  for  convenience'  sake  it  is  best  to 


ORIGIN    OF    THE    TERM    PALSTAVE. 


71 


treat  of  the  two  varieties  of  form  separately.  An  additional 
reason  for  this  may  be  found  in  the  possibility  that  the  loop  was 
a  comparatively  late  invention,  so  that  the  palstaves  provided 
with  it  may  be  in  some  cases  of  later 
date  than  those  without  it,  though 
the  identity  in  the  ornamentation  of 
some  of  the  instruments  of  the  two 
classes,  and  the  fact  of  their  being 
occasionally  found  together,  are  al- 
most conclusive  as  to  their  contem- 
poraneity. 

In  the  present  chapter  I  propose 
to  treat  of  the  celts  with  a  stop- 
ridge,  of  the  winged  celts,  and  of 
those  of  the  palstave  form. 

The  winged  celts  may  be  generally 
described  as  those  in  which  the 
flanges  are  short  and  have  a  great 
amount  of  lateral  extension.  When 
these  wings  are  hammered  over  so  as 
to  form  a  kind  of  socket  on  each  side 
of  the  blade,  one  of  the  varieties 
of  the  palstave  form  is  the  result. 
The  other  and  more  common  variety 
of  the  palstave  form  has  the  portion 
of  the  blade  which  lies  between  the 
wings  or  side  flanges  and  above  the 
stop-ridge  cast  thinner  than  the  rest 
of  the  blade,  thus  leaving  a  recess  or 
groove  on  each  side  into  which  the 
handle  fitted. 

I  have  already  made  frequent  use 
of  the  term  palstave,  and  it  will  be 
well  here  to  make  a  few  remarks 
as  to  the  origin  and  meaning  of  the 
word.  The  term  palstave,  or  more 
properly  paalstab,  comes  to  us  from 
the  Scandinavian  antiquaries.  Their 

reason  for  adopting  the  term  was  that  there  is  still  in  use  in 
Iceland  a  kind  of  narrow  spade  or  spud,  which  is  known  by  the 
name  of  paalstab,  and  which  somewhat  resembles  these  bronze 


72  WINGED   CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES.  [CHAP.   IV. 

instruments.  Woodcuts  of  two  of  these  Icelandic  palstaves  are 
given  in  the  Archaeological  Journal,*  from  drawings  communi- 
cated to  Mr.  Yates  by  Councillor  Thomsen,  of  Copenhagen.  They 
are  here  by  permission  reproduced.  The  derivation  of  the  term 
suggested  in  a  note  to  the  Journal  is  that  paal  comes  from  the 
Icelandic  verb  pula,  or  pala,  to  labour,  so  that  the  word  means  the 
"  labouring  staff."  But  this  appears  to  me  erroneous.  Pul,  indeed, 
signifies  hard,  laborious  work ;  but  pceli  (at  pcela)  means  to  dig,  and 
pall  (conf.  Latin  pala  and  French  pelle)  means  a  kind  of  spade  or 
shovel.  The  word,  indeed,  survives  in  the  English  language  as  peel, 
the  name  of  a  kind  of  wooden  shovel  used  by  bakers  for  placing 
loaves  in  the  oven.  The  meaning  of  the  term  would  appear, 
then,  to  be  rather  "spade  staff"  than  "labouring  staff,"  unless 
the  word  labouring  be  used  in  the  sense  of  the  French  labourer. 

Mr.  Thorns,  in  a  note  to  his  "  Translation  of  Worsaae's  Primeval 
Antiquities  of  Denmark, "j"  says  that  the  "term  Paalstab  was 
formerly  applied  in  Scandinavia  and  Iceland  to  a  weapon  used 
for  battering  the  shields  of  the  enemy,  as  is  shewn  by  passages  in 
the  Sagas.  Although  not  strictly  applicable  to  the  (bronze) 
instruments  in  question,  this  designation  is  now  so  generally  used 
by  the  antiquaries  of  Scandinavia  and  Germany,  that  it  seems 
desirable,  with  the  view  of  securing  a  fixed  terminology,  that  it 
should  be  introduced  into  the  archaeology  of  England."  The  term 
had  already  been  used  in  1848  in  the  "Guide  to  Northern 
Archaeology,"*  edited  by  the  Earl  of  Ellesmere,  and  has  now,  like 
celt,  become  adopted  into  the  English  language. 

I  have  not  been  able  to  refer  to  the  passage  in  the  Sagas  men- 
tioned as  above  by  Mr.  Thorns,  but  whatever  may  be  the  original 
meaning  of  the  word  palstave,  it  is  applied  by  northern  anti- 
quaries to  all  the  forms  of  celts  with  the  exception  of  those  of  the 
socketed  type.§ 

Among  English  antiquaries  it  has,  I  think,  been  used  in  a  more 
restricted  sense.  Professor  Daniel  Wilson  II  defines  palstaves  as 
"wedges,  more  or  less  axe-shaped,  having  a  groove  on  each  side 
terminating  in  a  stop-ridge,  and  with  lateral  flanges  destined  to 
secure  a  hold  on  the  handle.  The  typical  example,  however, 
which  he  engraves  has  neither  groove  nor  stop-ridge,  but  is  what 
I  should  term  a  winged  celt,  like  Fig.  56. 

*  Vol.  vii.  p.  74.  f  London,  1849,  p.  25.  +  P.  59. 

$  See  Nilsson,  "  Skandinaviska  Nordens  Ur-Invanare,"  p.  92. 
|j  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  2nd  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  382. 


CELTS    WITH    A    STOP-RIDGE. 


73 


In  the  present  work  I  propose  confining  the  term  palstave  to 
the  two  varieties  of  form  already  mentioned  ;  viz.  the  winged  celts 
which  have  their  wings  hammered  over  so  as  to  form  what  may  be 
termed  external  sockets  to  the  blade ;  and  those  with  the  portion 
of  the  blade  which  lies  between  the  side  flanges  and  above  the  stop 
thinner  than  that  which  is  below. 

The  first  form,  however,  of  which  I  have  to  treat  is  that  of  the 
celts  provided  with  a  stop-ridge  on  each  face.  These  are  almost 
always  flanged  celts. 

A  fine  specimen,  with  the  stop-ridge  consisting  of  a  straight  narrow 
raised  band  across  each  face,  and  with  a  second  curved  band  at  some  dis- 
tance below,  is  shown  in  Fig.  50.  It  was  found  atWigton,  Cumberland, 


Fig.  50.— Wigton. 

and  is  in  the  a/llection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.  The  face  between 
the  two  bandy  has  a  grained  appearance  given  it  by  hammering.  The 
wings  or  side  flanges  are  also  faceted  by  the  same  process.  In  the  same 
coDection  is  another  blade  (5£  inches)  of  this  form,  with  a  small  stop-ridge, 
and  having  the  lower  part  ornamented  with  vertical  punched  lines.  The 
sides  have  three  facets,  that  in  the  centre  ornamented  in  a  similar  manner. 
This  celt  was  found  at  Rougham,  Norfolk.  I  have  a  sketch  of  another 
(6£  inches)  found  near  Longtown,  Cumberland,  in  1860. 

I  have  a  nearly  similar  specimen,  but  only  4£  inches  long,  from  Stanton, 
Forest  of  Dean,  Gloucestershire.     Another  (5f-  inches)  with  only  a  slight 
stop-ridge  was  found  at  Aynhoe,*  Northamptonshire,  and  is  in  the  collec- 
«  Baker's  "  Hist,  of  North.,"  p.  558. 


74 


WINGED    CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


tion  of  Sir  Henry  Dryden.  Fig.  51  shows  a  beautifully  wrought  and 
highly  decorated  flanged  celt,  provided  with  a  somewhat  curved  stop-ridge 
connecting  the  two  flanges.  The  two  faces  of  the  celt  are  ornamented 
with  an  interlaced  pattern  produced  by  narrow  dents,  with  a  border  of 
chevrons  along  each  margin  punched  into  the  metal.  The  flanges  are 
worked  into  three  facets  ornamented  with  diagonal  grooves,  and  the 
lower  side  of  the  stop-ridge  has  a  moulding  worked  on  it.  This  fine 
example  of  an  ornamented  celt  was  found  near  Chollerford  Bridge, 
Northumberland,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S. 

A  somewhat  similar  but  unornamented  variety  of  instrument,  partaking 
more  of  the  palstave  character,  is  shown  in  Fig.  52.     The  original  was 


Fig.  51.— Chollerford  Bridge. 


found  in  excavations  at  Chatham  Dockyard,  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  As  will  be  seen,  the  recess  for  the  haft  ends  in  a  semicircular 
stop-ridge. 

In  Fig.  53  is  shown  a  winged  celt  without  stop-ridge  found  in  Bur  well 
Fen,  Cambridgeshire,  and  now  in  my  own  collection.  The  side  flanges 
or  wings  have  been  hammered  into  three  facets,  and  are  well  developed. 
The  form  of  the  blade  is  otherwise  that  of  a  flat  celt,  except  that  there  is 
a  slight  irregularity  in  the  sweep  of  the  sides,  which  results  from  the 
hammering  of  the  flanges.  The  form  occurs  occasionally  in  Ireland,  and 
one  (4£  inches)  is  figured  by  Wilde.*  Winged  celts  of  nearly  the  same 
form,  but  provided  with  a  stop-ridge,  are  occasionally  found.  One  of 
these  in  the  British  Museum,  found  at  Bucknell,  Herefordshire,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  54.  The  blade  below  the  stop-ridge  is  &  inch  thick ;  above  it 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  373,  fig.  258. 


VARIETIES   OF    WINGED    CELTS. 


75 


only  |  inch.     A  celt  of  much  the  same  character  (7£  inches),  found  at 
Wolvey,  Warwickshire,  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  M.  H.  Bloxam,  P.S.A. 


Fig.  53.— Burwell  Fen. 


Fig.  54.— Bucknell. 


The  double  curvature  of  the  sides  may  be  noticed  in  the  narrow  chisel- 
like  celt  shown  in  Fig.  55.  The  blade  in  this  instance  tapers  both  ways 
from  a  line  just  below  the  wings,  but  without  there  being 
any  actual  stop-ridge ;  a  third  slope  is  produced  by  the 
lower  part  of  the  blade  having  been  drawn  down  by 
hammering  to  form  the  edge.  The  original  was  found 
at  Culham,  near  Abingdon,  Oxfordshire,  and  is  in  my 
own  collection. 

I  have  another  specimen,  4J  inches  long,  and  half 
as  wide  again  as  the  Culham  chisel,  which  was  found 
near  Dorchester,  Oxon.  The  blade  at  the  lower  end 
of  the  wings  is  an  inch  wide,  but  in  the  straight  part 
between  that  point  and  the  edge  only  a  little  more 
than  £  inch  wide. 

Although  these  instruments  are  so  narrow  that  they 
may  be  regarded  as  chisels  rather  than  axes,  yet  from 
their  general  character  so  closely  resembling  that  of 
Fig.  53,  I  have  thought  it  best  to  insert  them  here. 

A  Scotch  example  will  be  subsequently  cited.        Kg'  55--Culham- 

Another  form  of  winged  celt  without  stop-ridge  is  shown  in  Fig.  56. 
In  this  the  blade  is  flat,  and  the  wings,  which  form  triangular  projections, 


76 


WINGED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  TV. 


stand  at  right  angles  to  it.  Had  they  been  hammered  over  to  form 
semicircular  receptacles  on  each  side  of  the  blade  the  instrument  would 
have  been  more  properly  described  as  a  palstave.  It  was  found  with 
others  near  Eeeth,  in  the  North  Hiding  of  Yorkshire,  and  is  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  where  are  also  other  specimens  of  this 
type  from  Linden,  Northumberland  (5£  inches) ;  Brompton,  N.E.,  York- 
shire (5^  inches) ;  and  Wolsingham,  Durham  (5f  inches). 


Fig.  56.— B*eth. 


Fig.  57  shows  a  winged  celt  with  a  broad  low  stop-ridge.  The  part  of 
the  blade  above  this  is  about  £  inch  thinner  than  the  part  below,  so  that 
though  transitional  in  character  it  belongs  to  one  of  the  classes  to  which 
I  would  wish  to  restrict  the  term  palstave.  This  specimen  was  found 
near  Dorchester,  Oxfordshire,  and  is  in  my  own  collection. 

I  have  a  nearly  similar  palstave  (6  inches  long)  found  in  "Wicken  Fen, 
Cambridgeshire.  In  this  the  blade  below  the  stop-ridge  is  ^  inch  thick, 
and  above  it  &  inch.  In  this  as  well  as  in  that  from  Dorchester  the  stop- 
ridge  is  well  below  the  level  of  the  side  flanges.  In  one  found  on 
Hollingbury  Hill,*  near  Brighton,  and  now  in  the  British  Museum,  the 
stop-ridge  is  nearly  on  the  same  level  as  the  side  flanges.  It  was  found 
in  the  year  1825,  together  with  four  looped  armillee,  a  torque,  and  three 
spiral  rings,  which  are  said  to  have  been  arranged  in  a  symmetrical 
manner  in  a  depression  dug  in  the  chalk.  Both  the  torque  and  the 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  324. 


TRANSITIONAL    FORMS. 


77 


palstave  were  broken  ;  and  it  is  thought  that  this  was  done  intentionally, 
at  the  time  of  the  interment. 

A  similar  discovery  is  recorded  as  having  been  made  in  1794  on  the 
Quantock  Hills,  when  two  large  torques  were  found,  within  each  of  which 
was  placed  a  palstave.  In  this  case,  however,  these  instruments  were  of 
the  looped  kind. 

Winged  celts  of  the  type  of  Fig.  57  are  of  not  unfrequent  occurrence 
in  Ireland,  though  the  stop-ridge  is  usually  less  fully  developed. 

They  also  occur  in  France.  One  from  Jonquieres  *  (Oise)  has  been 
figured.  I  have  a  good  specimen  (6J  inches)  from  the  Seine  at  Paris. 
The  wings  are  rather  wider  and  the 
stop-ridge  better  defined  than  in  the 
figure.  One  from  Gasny  is  in  the 
Museum  at  Evreux. 

There  are  several  in  the  Grottingen 
Museum,  from  a  hoard  found  in  that 
neighbourhood.  . 

Usually  the  stop-ridge  is  nearly  on 
the  same  level  as  the  part  of  the  side 
flanges  on  which  it  abuts,  as  will  be 
seen  in  Fig.  58.  This  specimen  was 
found  in  the  gravel  of  the  Trent  at 
Colwick,  near  Nottingham,  and  is  in 
my  own  collection.  The  blade  imme- 
diately below  the  stop  is  fluted,  and 
the  bottom  of  this  fluting  tapers  some- 
what in  the  contrary  direction  to  the 
tapering  of  the  blade.  The  junction 
of  the  fluting  and  the  face  produces 
an  elliptic  ridge  of  elegant  outline. 
The  blade  is  f  inch  thick  at  this  ridge, 
but  above  the  stop-ridge  barely  f  inch. 
It  is  rather  thinner  near  the  stop- 
ridge  than  somewhat  higher  up,  so 
that  the  blade  would  be  as  it  were 
dovetailed  into  the  handle,  if  tightly 
tied  to  it.  I  have  specimens  of  much 
the  same  type  from  Attleborough,  Nor- 
folk (6f  inches),  Newbury,  Berks  (6f  inches),  and  Hay,  Brecknockshire 
(7£  inches).  A  curious  variety  of  this  type  found  at  Monach-ty-gwyn,f 
near  Aberdovey,  has  on  the  bottom  of  one  of  the  recesses  for  the  handle 
a  number  of  sunk  diagonal  lines  crossing  each  other  so  as  to  form  a  kind 
of  lattice  pattern.  It  seems  to  me  that  though  this  cross-hatching  occurs 
on  only  one  face  of  the  palstave,  it  was  intended  rather  as  a  means  of 
giving  it  a  grip  on  the  handle  than  as  an  ornament,  for  when  hafted  this 
part  of  the  instrument  must  have  been  concealed  by  the  wood.  Mr. 
Barnwell,  however,  regards  it  in  the  light  of  an  ornament. 

Plain  palstaves  of  this  character  are  of  not  unfrequent  occurrence  in 
the  North  of  France.  I  have  one  from  a  hoard  found  at  Bernay,  near 
Abbeville.  With  it  were  palstaves  of  different  varieties,  but  none  of 
them  provided  with  loops.  The  form  also  occurs  occasionally  in  Holland. 


Fig.  58.-Colwick. 


Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 


t  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  21. 


78 


WINGED    CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


In  the  palstave  engraved  as  Fig.  59,  the  half -oval  ornament  below  the 
stop-ridge  is  preserved,  but  there  is  a  raised  bead  round  it.  There  is  also 
a  slight  median  ridge  running  down  the  blade.  The  joint  of  the  two 
moulds  in  which  it  was  cast  can  be  traced  upon  the  sides  of  the  instru- 
ment, and  it  appears  as  if  one  of  the  moulds  had  been  somewhat  deeper 
than  the  other.  The  original  was  found  at  Barrington,  near  Cambridge, 
and  is  in  my  own  collection.  I  have  other  specimens  of  the  same  type, 
and  of  nearly  the  same  size,  from  Swaffham  Fen,  Cambridge  ;  and  from 
Dorchester,  Oxfordshire.  The  semi-elliptical  ridge  on  the  latter  is  larger 
and  flatter  than  in  that  figured.  The  same  is  the  case  in  a  large  speci- 
men (6£  inches  long)  from  Weston,  near  Ross,  also  in  my  own  collection. 

I  have  seen  others  from  the  Fens,  near  FJy  (6£  inches),  and  from  Milden- 
hall  (6J-  inches),  in  the  collections  of  Mr.  Marshall  Fisher,  of  Ely,  and  the 
Rev.  S.  Banks,  of  Cottenham,  near  Cambridge.  Another  (5J  inches) 
from  the  Carlton  Bode  find  is  in  the  Museum  at  Norwich. 


Fig.  59.— Barrington.        i  Fig.  60.-Harston. 

One  from  North  Wales*  (7£  inches),  in  an  unfinished  state,  is  in  the 
British  Museum.  Another  (6f  inches)  from  Llanfyllin,f  Montgomeryshire, 
is  also  of  nearly  this  type.  One  from  North  Tyne  (6£  inches),  in  the 
Newcastle  Museum,  has  two  of  the  looped  ridges  one  below  the  other  on 
each  face.  In  this  type  and  in  that  subsequently  described  the  ridge  at 
the  sides  of  the  semi-elliptical  ornament  sometimes  dies  into  the  upper 
part  of  the  blade.  The  variety  like  Fig.  59  is  also  abundant  in  the  North 
of  France.  There  were  two  or  three  in  the  hoard  from  Bernay,  near 
Abbeville,  and  I  have  one  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Lille. 

In  Fig.  60  the  same  general  type  is  preserved,  but  there  is  a  vertical 
*  "Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  iv.  25.  f  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  209. 


PALSTAVES   WITH    ORNAMENTS    ON    FACE. 


79 


rib  running  down  the  middle  of  the  semi-elliptical  ornament  below  the 
stop  ;  and  the  median  ridge  along  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  is  more  fully 
developed.  In  this  specimen,  which  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was 
found  at  Harston,  near  Cambridge,  there  is  an  attempt  at  ornamentation 
along  the  sides,  the  angles  of  the  blade  having  been  hammered  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  produce  a  series  of  small  pointed  oval  facets  along  them. 

I  have  other  specimens  of  the  same  type,  but  without  the  ornamenta- 
tion on  the  sides,  from  Burwell,  Q/uy,  and  Reach  Fens,  near  Cambridge, 
6  inches,  5f  inches,  and  6f  inches  long  respectively.  In  that  from  Bur- 
well  there  is  no  median  ridge  below  the  ornament.  Canon  Greenwell  has 
one  which  was  found  with  three  others,  one  of  them  with  a  loop,  near 
Wantage,  Berks. 

A  rather  peculiar  variety  of  this  type  (6f-  inches),  found  in  Anglesea,* 
has  been  figured,  as  well  as  another 
from  Pendinas  Hill,f  near  Aberyst- 
with. 

In  palstaves  of  this  class  there 
is  often  a  slight  projection  on  each 
of  the  sides  a  little  below  the  level 
of  the  stop-ridge.  Below  this  pro- 
jection the  sides  are  usually  more 
carefully  hammered  and  planished 
than  above  it. 

In  a  narrow  palstave  of  this  class, 
found  at  Freeland,  near  Witney, 
Oxfordshire,  there  are  three  short 
ridges  at  the  bottom  of  each  of  the 
recesses  for  the  handle,  like  those 
in  a  palstave  from  Newbury,  sub- 
sequently described.  These  were 
probably  designed  to  assist  in 
steadying  the  handle. 

A  palstave  (7j  inches)  from  Cy- 
nwyd,|  Merionethshire,  appears  to 
be  of  this  type. 

An  instrument  of  this  type  from 
Les  Andelys  §  (Eure)  has  been 
figured.  Another,  with  the  vertical 
rib  in  the  shield,  from  a  hoard 
found  in  Normandy,  has  been  engraved  by  the  Abbe  Cochet.||  Some 
from  the  Bernay  hoard  have  a  similar  ornament. 

On  some  palstaves  of  this  class  there  is  a  series  of  vertical  ribs  within 
the  semi-elliptical  loop,  as  will  be  seen  in  Fig.  61.  This  is  taken  from  a 
specimen  found  at  Shippey,  near  Ely,  which  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
Marshall  Fisher  of  Ely,  who  has  kindly  allowed  me  to  engrave  it.  I  have 
one  from  Bottisham,  near  Cambridge  (6f  inches),  on  which  there  is  a 
smaller  vertical  ridge,  on  each  side  of  the  central  ridge,  within  the  orna- 
ment. One  from  Snettisham,  Norfolk  (6£  inches),  like  that  from  Shippey, 

*  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  13. 

t  Meyrick's  "  Cardigansh."  and  "Ancient  Arm.,"  by  Skelton,  pi.  xlvii.  1. 

J  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxiii.  p.  118.  §  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 

||  "La  Seine  Inf.,"  p.  272. 


Fig.  ei.—  Shippey. 


80 


WINGED    CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


is  in  the  Norwich  Museum.  Another  from  Lakenheath,  Suffolk  (5J 
inches),  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  James  Carter  of  Cambridge. 

A  palstave  with  this  ornament  is  in  the  Museum  at  Soissons. 

The  type  is  also  found  in  Northern  Germany.* 

In  some  cases  these  vertical  lines  below  the  stop-ridge  are  not  enclosed 
in  any  loop.  In  Fig.  62  is  shown  an  example  of  the  kind  from  a  speci- 
men in  my  own  collection  found  in  the  Severn,  near  Wainlodes  Hill, 
Gloucester.  It  has  a  slight  rib  down  the  middle  of  the  blade.  One  of 
the  same  class  (6|  inches),  with  four  vertical  stripes,  found  on  Clayton 
Hill,  Sussex,  is  in  the  collection  of  Mrs.  Dickinson  of  Hurstpierpoint ; 


Fig.  62.— Severn 


Fig.  63. — Sunningwell. 


four  others  (about  6£  inches  long),  with  five  short  vertical  ridges,  were 
found  with  two  of  the  type  of  Fig.  63  in  making  the  railway  near 
Bognor,  and  are  now  in  the  Blackmore  Museum  at  Salisbury. 

Another,  apparently  of  the  same  type,  found  near  Brighton,  is  en- 
graved in  the  Sussex  Archaokgical  Collections.] 

Another  variety,  having  nearly  the  same  general  form,  but  no  elliptical 
ridge  below  the  stop,  is  shown  in  Fig.  63,  engraved  from  a  specimen  in 
my  own  collection,  found  at  Sunningwell,  near  Abingdon.  The  end  of 
the  recess  for  the  handle  is  somewhat  rounded,  and  there  is  a  well-marked 
central  rib  running  down  the  blade.  At  the  upper  part,  near  the  stop- 

*  Lindenschmit,  "Alt.  uns.  heidn.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft.  i.  Taf.  iv.  43. 
t  Vol.  ii.  p.  268,  No.  11. 


PALSTAVES    WITH    A    CENTRAL    RIB    ON   THE    BLADE.  81 

ridge,  there  are  also  slight  side  flanges.  The  metal  in  the  recess  for  the 
handle  is  thinnest  near  the  stop,  so  as  to  be  somewhat  dovetailing. 

This  is  markedly  the  case  in  a  fine  example  of  the  same  type  (6£  inches) 
with  the  provenance  of  which  I  am  unacquainted.  In  another,  also  in  my 
own  collection,  found  at  Newbury,  Berks,  the  side  flanges  of  the  blade 
are  continued  almost  down  to  the  edge,  and  the  bottom  as  well  as  the  end 
of  the  recess  for  the  handle  is  rounded.  Near  the  end  of  the  recess  are 
some  slight  longitudinal  ribs,  one  on  one  face  and  two  on  the  other, 
perhaps  designed  to  assist  in  steadying  the  handle.  The  mouldings 
along  the  sides  of  the  blade  are  often  much  more  fully  developed,  like 
those  on  Fig.  77. 

Palstaves  of  this  type  have  been  obtained  from  the  following  localities : 
from  South  Cerney,*  near  Cirencester ;  from  the  mouth  of  the  Eiver 
Wandle,f  in  Surrey,  now  preserved  in  the  British  Museum  ;  from  Bucks  J 
(6  inches  long),  also  in  the  British  Museum;  from  Chichester ;  §  Astley,|| 
Worcestershire ;  Liang wyllog,^f  Anglesea  (6£  inches) ;  from  near  Bognor,** 
Billingshurst,  ff  and  If  ord,  \  \  Sussex ;  and  Lovehayne,  §  §  near  Broad  Down, 
Devon  (5£  inches) ;  where  several  appear  to  have  been  found  in  the  rough 
state  in  which  they  came  from  the  mould.  I  have  an  example  from  the 
neighbourhood  of  Penzance. 

One  (6f  inches)  found  near  Ashford,  Kent,  is  in  the  Mayer  Collection 
at  Liverpool.  One  of  the  same  kind  was  found  with  a  hammer,  a  tanged 
chisel,  broken  spear-heads,  and  rough  metal,  in  Burgesses'  Meadow, 
Oxford.  The  hoard  is  now  in  the  Ashmolean  Museum.  In  three 
palstaves  of  this  kind  found  in  the  parishes  of  Llandrinio,  ||  ||  and  Caersws, 
Montgomeryshire,  and  St.  Harmon,  Eadnorshire,  there  is  a  hole  in  the 
metal  between  the  two  recesses  for  the  handle  just  above  the  stop-ridge. 
It  has  been  thought  by  Professor  Westwood  that  these  holes  were  con- 
nected with  the  manner  of  fastening  the  instrument  to  its  haft,  but  it 
appears  to  me  much  more  likely  that  they  arise  from  accidental  defects 
in  casting.  This  is  certainly  the  case  with  two  specimens  of  my  own, 
which  also  have  holes  through  the  same  part  of  the  instrument,  where  the 
metal  is  thin. 

One  (5  inches),  rather  narrower  in  the  blade  than  the  figure,  found  near 
Longford,  Ireland,  is  in  the  Blackmore  Museum  at  Salisbury. 

Palstaves  with  a  central  and  two  lateral  ribs  on  the  blade  are  of  not 
unfrequent  occurrence  on  the  Continent,  especially  in  the  North  of  France. 
I  have  examples  much  like  the  figure  found  in  the  hoard  at  Bernay,  near 
Abbeville.  Others,  much  narrower  in  the  blade,  have  been  discovered  in 
large  numbers  in  the  North-west  of  France. 

German  examples  have  been  figured  by  Lindenschmit.^ 

In  another  variety  the  blade  is  nearly  flat,  having  only  a  broad  pro- 
tuberant ridge  extending  along  the  upper  part  to  the  stop.  A  palstave  of 
this  kind,  found  near  Winfrith,  Weymouth,  Dorset,  is  shown  in  Fig.  64. 
In  this,  the  metal  between  the  side  flanges  tapers  towards  the  top  of  the 

*  Arch.,  vol.  x.  pi.  x.  2,  p.  132.  t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  8. 

I  "Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  iv.  26.  §  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  38. 
||  Allies,  "Wore.,"  p.  112,  pi.  iv.  4. 

II  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvii.  pi.  x.  No.  3,  p.  163. 

**  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  255.  ft  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  xxvii.  p.  183. 

%%  S.  A.  C.,  vol.  xxix.  p.  134.  §§  Trans.  Dev.  Assoc.,  vol.  ii.  p.  647. 

Illl  "Montgom.  Collections,"  vol.  iii.  p.  435. 
HIT  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  i.  Taf.  iv. 

G 


82 


WINGED    CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES 


[CHAP.  iv. 


instrument,  instead  of  being  of  nearly  even  thickness,  as  is  often  the  case, 
or  thinnest  near  the  stop-ridge,  as  it  is  sometimes.  Close  to  the  stop  the 
metal  is  ^  inch  thick,  while  at  the  top  of  the  recess  it  comes  to  a  nearly 
sharp  edge.  A  palstave  of  this  character  was  found  on  Kingston  Hill,* 
Surrey,  near  Caesar's  Camp. 

In  a  specimen  found  at  Winwick,f  Lancashire,  the  blade  below  the  stop- 
ridge  appears  to  be  nearly  flat.  A  broad  flat  ring  of  bronze,  If  inch  in 
diameter  (Fig.  188),  was  found  at  the  same  time.  It  has  been  thought 
that  this  was  attached  to  the  shaft  to  prevent  its  splitting.  A  palstave 
much  like  that  from  Winwick  was  found  at  Chagford,  Devon,  and  is  in 


Fig.  64. — Weymouth. 


Fig.  66. — Burwell  Fen 


the  possession  of  Mr.  GK  W.  Ormerod,  F.GKS.  Another  (6£  inches),  from 
Ashford,  Kent,  is  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool.  Another  of  these 
plain  palstaves,  found  near  Llanidan,J  Anglesea,  with  one  of  the  looped 
kind  somewhat  like  Fig.  76,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia  Cambrensis. 

I  have  a  palstave  of  nearly  the  same  form,  but  with  a  more 
clearly  defined  semi-conical  bracket  below  the  stop,  which  was 
found  at  Masseyck,  on  the  frontiers  of  Belgium  and  Holland. 

A  short  and  thick  form  of  palstave  is  shown  in  Fig.  65,  engraved 
from  a  specimen  found  in  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge.  On  one  of  its  faces 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  82. 
t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  pi.  xxv.  p. 
I  3rd  Series,  vol.  xiii.  p.  283. 


i ;  vol.  xiv.  p.  269. 


SHORTENED    BY    WEAR. 


it  has  the  semi- elliptical  ornament,  with  one  vertical  rib  in  it,  below  the 
stop-ridge.  On  the  other  there  are  five  ribs  instead  of  one  within  the 
ornament. 

I  have  another  from  Bottisham  Fen  (4f  inches),  not  quite  so  heavy  in 
its  make,  and  perfectly  flat  below  the  stop-ridge.  The  ends  of  the  recess 
for  the  handle  are  somewhat  undercut,  so  as  to  keep  the  wood  close  to  the 
blade  when  a  blow  was  struck. 

The  shortened  proportions  of  these  instruments  are  probably  due  to 
wear.  In  this  instance  it  is  not  improbable  that  the  cutting  end  of  the 
original  palstave  has  been  broken  off,  and  the  blunt  end  that  was  left  has 
been  again  drawn  to  an  edge  by  hammering. 

A  form  of  palstave  without  any  ornament  below  the  stop-ridge  is  shown 
in  Fig.  66.  This  specimen  was  found  in  1846  at  East  Harnham,  near 


Fig.  66.— East  Harnham 


Fig.  67.— Burwell  F 


Salisbury,  and  is  now  in  my  own  collection.  The  thickness  of  the  blade 
below  the  stop  is  nearly  £  inch,  above  it  but  little  more  than  %  inch.  The 
sides  are  remarkably  flat. 

One,  only  2£  inches  long,  merely  recessed  for  the  handle,  found  at 
Chatham  Hill,  Kent,  is  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool. 

This  plain  form  with  a  square  stop-ridge  is  found  in  France  and  in 
Western  Germany. 

A  long  chisel-like  form  of  palstave  is  shown  in  Fig.  67,  engraved 
from  a  specimen  in  my  own  collection  found  in  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge. 
It  is  ornamented  with  a  semi-elliptical  projecting  ridge  below  the  stop. 
The  flanges  at  the  sides  of  the  recess  have  some  notches  running  diagonally 
into  them,  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  barb,  such  as  would  prevent  the  blade 
from  being  drawn  away  from  the  handle  when  bound  to  it  by  a  cord. 

I  have  another  nearly  similar  tool,  also  from  the  Cambridge  Fens,  but 
without  any  barbs.  In  a  third,  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Dorchester, 

G  2 


84 


WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


Oxon,  there  are  neither  barbs  at  the  sides  nor  any  ornament  below  the 

stop-ridge.  I  have  seen  another  of  the 
same  character  (4^  inches)  which  was 
found  at  Wolsonbury,  Sussex,  and  is 
in  the  collection  of  Mrs.  Dickinson. 
Another  (4£  inches),  found  in  the 
Thames  at  Kingston,  Surrey,  is  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 
I  have  seen  another  (6|  inches),  found 
at  Sutton,  near  Woodbridge,  Suffolk, 
in  which  there  was  a  tongue-shaped 
groove  below  the  stop-ridge,  like  that 
on  the  socketed  celt,  Fig.  148,  but 
single  instead  of  double. 

The  Eev.  James  Beck,  F.S.A.,*  has 
a  palstave  of  this  kind  6  inches  long 
and  1J  inch  wide  at  the  edge,  with  a 
projecting  rib  below  the  stop-ridge 
and  also  in  the  recess  above.  It  was 
found  at  "Westburton  Hill,  near  Big- 
nor,  Sussex.  There  are  depressions 
on  each  side  of  the  rib  below  the 
stop,  forming  an  ornament  like  that 
on  Fig.  81. 

A  narrow  palstave,  apparently  of  the 
same  character,  found  at  Windsor,! 
is  engraved  by  Stukeley. 

A  very  beautiful  narrow  palstave, 
found  in  the  Thames,  and  now  in  the 
collection  of  General  A.  Pitt  Eivers, 
F.E.S.,  is  shown  in  Fig.  68.  As  will 
be  seen,  the  angles  are  •ornamented 
with  a  kind  of  milling,  and  the  sides 
are  also  decorated  with  zigzag  and 
chevron  patterns. 

In  Fig.  69  is  shown  an  unfinished  casting  for  a 
palstave  of  unusually  small  size,  which  formed 
part  of  the  great  hoard  found  at  Stibbard,  J  Norfolk. 
About  seventy  such  castings  were  found,  and  about 
ten  castings  for  spear-heads  (see  Fig.  407). 

The  form  of  palstave  with  the  side  wings  or 
flanges  hammered  over  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of 
semi-circular  socket  on  either  side  of  the  blade,  is 
of  rare  occurrence  in  Britain,  and  is  usually  pro- 
vided with  a  loop.  In  Canon  Greenwell's  collection 
is  one  (7  inches)  without  any  ornament  below  the 
square  stop-ridge,  with  the  side  wings  slightly 
hammered  over.  It  was  found  with  others  (with 
and  without  loops),  together  with  a  mould  for 
palstaves  (Fig.  527),  at  Hotham  Carr,  York- 
Fig.  69—stibbard.  j  shire,  E.  E. 

;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  442.  f  "Itin.  Cur."  Cent.,  ii.  pi.  xcvi. 

j  Arch.  Inst.,  Norwich  vol.  p.  xxvi. 


Fig.  68.— Thames. 


PALSTAVES   WITH    A    TRANSVERSE    EDGE. 


85 


In  a  hoard  of  about  sixty  bronze  objects  found  at  Westow,*  about 

the  Scarborough  Eoad,  was  one  p£~ 
this  kind,  like  Fig.  85,  but  without  a  loop,  and  about  thirty  socketed  celts, 


twelve  miles  from  York  on  the  Scarborough  Eoad,  was  one  palstave  of 


six  gouges,  a  socketed  chisel,  two  tanged  chisels,  and 
numerous  fragments  of  metal,  including  some  jets  or 
runners  broken  off  castings. 

The  type  is  of  common  occurrence  in  Austria,  South  Ger- 
many, and  the  South  of  France. 

Palstaves  of  the  adze  form,  or  having  the  blade  at  right 
angles  to  the  septum  between  the  flanges,  are  but  very 
seldom  found  in  Britain.  A  small  specimen  from  the 
collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  is  shown  in  Fig.  70. 
It  was  found  at  Irthington,  Cumberland. 

Another,  from  North  Owersby,  Lincolnshire,  in  the  same 
collection,  is  shown  in  Fig.  71 .  It  has  a  remarkably  narrow 
chisel-like  blade. 

Irish  examples  will  be  subsequently  cited. 

I  have,   in  Fig.  72,  engraved  for  comparison  a  larger 


Irthington. 


specimen  in  my  own  collection,  which  came  from  the  Valley 
of  the  Ehine,  near  Bonn.     One  from  Bad  en  f  is  figured  by  Lindenschmit. 
Others  have  been  found  near  Landshut,  J  Bavaria,  and  in  the  Ehine 
district.  §     One  with  a  loop,  from  Hesse,  ||  is  engraved  by  Lindenschmit. 


Fig.  71  .—North  Owersby. 


Fig.  72.— Bonn. 


*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  58  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  381. 
t  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  i.  Taf.  iv.  48. 

J  Von  Braunmiihl,  "Alt.  Deutschen  Grabmaler "  (1826),  pi.  i.  3;    Schreiber,  "Die 
ehern.  Streitkeile,"  Taf.  i.  13,  Taf.  ii.  14.  §  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 

||  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  i.  Taf.  iv.  49. 


86  WINGED   CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES.  [CHAP.  IV. 

A  long  and  narrow  example  of  this  type  *  was  found  at  Villeder,  near 
Ploermel,  Morbihan,  and  has  been  figured  by  Simonin.  There  are  speci- 
mens in  the  museums  at  Eouen  and  Tours.  Some  have  a  loop  on  one 
face.  A  specimen  from  Escoville  is  in  the  museum  at  Caen.  Several  with 
and  without  loops  have  been  found  in  the  Swiss  lake-dwellings,!  the 
type  being  termed  the  Hache  Troyon  by  Desor.]: 

A  beautiful  palstave  of  the  same  character  is  preserved  in  the  Antiken 
Cabinet  at  Vienna.  Its  sides  are  ornamented  with  four  small  sets  of  con- 
centric circles  and  a  pattern  of  dotted  lines,  punched  in  after  the  instru- 
ment was  fashioned.  The  form  has  also  been  found  in  Italy. § 

Palstaves  without  loops,  but  of  which  no  detailed  description  is  given, 
are  recorded  to  have  been  found  at  the  following  places : — The  Thames,  || 
near  Kingston  ;  Drewsteignton,^[  Devonshire ;  Cundall  Manor,**  North 
Biding,  Yorkshire;  Aspatria,ff  Cumberland;  Ackers  Common,^  near 
Warrington,  Lancashire ;  Bushbury,  §§  Brewood,  Handsworth,  and  a 
barrow  on  Morridge,  Staffordshire ;  near  Llanvair  Station,  ||  ||  Khos-y-gad, 
Anglesea. 

Palstaves  of  which  it  is  not  specified  whether  they  were  provided  with 
a  loop  or  no,  have  been  found  in  the  Thames,^  near  London  ;  the  old 
Eiver,  Sleaford,***  Lincolnshire ;  Canada  Wharf,tff  Eotherhithe  ;  Wol- 
vey,^JJ  Warwickshire ;  and  near  Corbridge,  §§§  Glamorganshire  (?) 

Plain  palstaves  without  loops  have  frequently  occurred  with  other  forms 
of  instruments  in  hoards  of  bronze  objects.  The  following  instances  may 
be  cited.  Several  were  found  with  unfinished  socketed  celts,  fragments  of 
swords  and  spears,  a  socketed  chisel,  and  lumps  of  metal,  at  Romford,|||||| 
Essex.  At  Nettleham,^|^f^f  near  Lincoln,  one  was  found  with  looped  pal- 
staves, socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  and  a  tube,  most  of  which  will  be  men- 
tioned in  subsequent  pages.  In  the  hoard  at  Battlefield,****  near  Shrews- 
bury, a  palstave  without  loop,  a  flat  wedge-shaped  celt,  and  three  curious 
curved  objects  were  found  together.  Other  instances  are  given  in 
Chapter  XXII. 

The  palstaves  which  are  provided  with  a  loop  on  one  side 
present  as  many  varieties  as  those  without  the  loop.  The  same 
character  of  ornamentation  occurs  on  the  instruments  of  both 
classes.  Indeed,  for  some  length  of  time  both  forms  appear  to 
have  been  contemporaneous  and  in  use  together. 

Some  of  them  are,  however,  entirely  devoid  of  ornament,  as  will  be 
seen  from  Fig.  73.  This  represents  a  palstave  in  my  own  collection 
found  near  Dorchester,  Oxfordshire.  The  loop  has  unfortunately  been 
broken  off.  At  the  stop  the  metal  is  1 J  inch  thick,  but  the  diaphragm 

*  "La  Vie  Souterraine,"  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  iii.  p.  100. 

f  Keller,  6ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  30;  7ter  Ber.,  Taf.  ix.  30. 

+  "  Les  Palafittes,"  fig.  40. 

§  Bull,  di  Palet.  Ital.,  vol.  i.  p.  10,  Tav.  I.  9. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  327.  H  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxix.  p.  96. 

**  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  346.    ft  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  164. 

H  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  158.  §§  Plot's  "  Nat.  Hist,  of  Staffordsh.,"  p.  403. 

{HI  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  85.  HIT  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  63. 

***   Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  73.  ftt  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  412. 

JJJ  Proc.\Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  129. 

§§§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  248.  j|||j|  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  302. 

H1F1I  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  159.  «***  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  251. 


LOOPED    PALSTAVES. 


87 


between  the  two  recesses  for  the  haft  is  only  f  inch  thick.  This  specimen 
is  shorter  than  usual  in  the  blade,  which  not  improbably  has  been  con- 
siderably worn  away  by  use. 

A  somewhat  larger  instrument,  but  of  precisely  the  same  type,  found 
at  Kamsbury,*  Wilts,  is  engraved  in  the  Salisbury  volume  of  the  Archaeo- 
logical Institute.  The  Eev.  James  Beck,  F.S.A.,  has  one  (6£  inches)  of 
narrower  proportions,  found  at  Pulborough,  f  Sussex.  I  have  seen 
another  from  near  Wallingford,  Berks. 
Stukeley  has  engraved  a  somewhat  simi- 
lar palstave  found  near  Windsor.  J 

In  some  the  bottom  of  the  recesses, 
instead  of  being  square,  is  rounded  more 
or  less  like  Fig.  52,  and  there  is  a  pro- 
jecting bead  round  its  margin.  I  have 
a  narrow  specimen  of  this  kind  5|  inches 
long  and  1£  inch  broad  at  the  edge, 
found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Dor- 
chester, Oxon. 

A  number  of  palstaves  of  this  kind 
were  discovered  in  1861  at  Wilmington, § 
Sussex,  in  company  with  socketed  celts, 
fragments  of  two  daggers,  and  a  mould 
for  socketed  celts.  The  whole  of  these 
are  now  in  the  Lewes  Museum. 

In  the  hoard  found  near  Guilsfield,|| 
Montgomeryshire,  were  some  instru- 
ments of  this  kind,  associated  with 
socketed  celts,  gouges,  swords,  scab- 
bards, spear-heads,  &c.  Others  from  Stretton,^[  Staffordshire  (5J  inches), 
and  Lancashire  **  (5  J  inches)  are  engraved,  though  badly,  in  the  Archao- 
logia.  Two  others  of  this  character  (5  inches)  were  found  on  Hangleton 
Down,ff  near  Brighton,  and  another  at  Grlangwnny,  JJ  near  Caernarvon. 

I  have  seen  others  found  at  Sutton,  near  Woodbridge,  Suffolk. 

A  larger  example  of  the  same  type,  found  near  Wallingford,  and  com- 
municated to  me  by  Mr.  H.  A.  Davy,  is  shown  in  Fig.  74.  In  this  the 
blade  is  flat  and  without  ornament.  The  short  specimen  shown  in  Fig.  73 
may  originally  have  resembled  this;  as  such  instruments  must  have 
been  liable  to  break,  and  would  then  have  been  drawn  out  and  sharpened 
in  a  curtailed  condition ;  or  if  not  broken  would  become  eventually 
"  stumped  up  "  by  wear.  In  the  British  Museum  and  elsewhere  are 
many  palstaves  and  celts  which  have  been  worn  almost  to  the  stump  by 
re-sharpening. 

Nearly  thirty  palstaves,  mostly,  I  believe,  of  this  type,  were  found  with 
about  twelve  socketed  celts,  like  Fig.  116,  and  lumps  of  rough  metal, 
near  Worthing,  in  1877.  The  whole  had  been  packed  in  an  urn,  of 
coarse  earthenware. 

»  P.  112,  fig.  37.  t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  442. 
J  "It.  Cur."  Cent.,  ii.  pi.  xcvi. 

§  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  171 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  192. 

H  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  251 ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  214  ; 
"  Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 

IF  Vol.  v.  p.  113.  **Ibid. 

ft  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  viii.  p.  268.  JJ  Arch.,  vol.  vii.  p.  417. 


Kg.  73.— Dorchester. 


88 


WINGED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  rv. 


Looped  palstaves  of  the  type  of  Fig.  74  are  occasionally  found  in 
Ireland.  One  with  a  small  bead  running  down  the  centre  of  the  blade 
found  in  West  Meath  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia.* 

One  from  Grenoble,  \  Isere,  is  engraved  by  Chantre. 

Some  palstaves  of  much  the  same  general  character  have  a  median 
ridge,  occasionally  almost  amounting  to  a  rib,  running  down  the  blade 
below  the  stop.  One  of  this  kind  from  Stanton  Harcourt,  Oxfordshire,  is 
shown  in  Fig.  75.  On  the  face  of  the  recess  there  are  some  slightly 
raised  ribs  running  down  to  the  stop,  which  are  not  shown  in  the  cut. 


Fig.  74.— Wallingford. 


Fig.  75. — Stanton  Harcourt. 


Two  (6f  inches)  were  found  near  Bolton  Percy,  Yorkshire,  one  of  which 
is  in  Canon  Grreenwell's  collection,  and  the  other  in  the  British  Museum. 

Mr.  John  Brent,  F.S.A.,  has  an  example  of  nearly  the  same  type  from 
Blean,  near  Canterbury.  Another  from  Buckland,  near  Dover  (6-]-  inches), 
is  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool.  One  from  Ombersley,  \  Worcester- 
shire, appears  to  be  of  the  same  kind.  I  have  also  a  large  specimen 
(6£  inches)  from  Bottisham,  Cambridge. 

In  the  palstave  engraved  as  Fig.  76,  the  central  rib  down  the  blade  is 
much  more  fully  developed.  It  was  found  at  Brassington,  near  Wirks- 
worth,  Derbyshire,  and  is  in  my  own  collection.  It  is  considerably  under- 
cut at  the  stop,  so  as  to  keep  the  handle  pressed  against  the  central 
diaphragm  of  metal. 

*  Vol.  ix.  p.  84,  pi.  iii.  1.  f  "  Album,"  pi.  ix.  4.          %  Allies,  p.  108,  pi.  iv.  3. 


LOOPED    PALSTAVES    WITH    RIBS    ON    BLADE. 


89 


A  palstave  of  the  same  character  from  Llanidan,*  Anglesea,  has  been 
figured.  It  is  said  to  have  been  found  with  another  without  a  loop. 
Another  from  Boston,  f  Lincolnshire,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia. 
Others  with  the  ribs  very  distinct  were  found  in  a  hoard  at  Wallington, 
Northumberland,  and  are  in  the  possession  of  Sir  Charles  Trevelyan. 

I  have  seen  others  of  the  same  general  character  which  were  found  at 
Downton,  near  Salisbury  (5f  inches),  and  at  Aston  le  Walls,  Northamp- 
tonshire. 

One  with  a  narrower  and  more  distinct  midrib,  found  at  Nymegen, 
Guelderland,  Holland,  is  in  the  museum  at  Ley  den. 

In  Fig.  77  is  shown  another  variety  which  has  two  beads  running  down 
the  sides  of  the  blade,  in  addition  to  the  central  rib.  I  bought  this  specimen 


Fig.  76.— Brassington.        £ 

at  Bath,  but  I  do  not  know  where  it  was  discovered.  It  is  much  like  one 
which  was  found  on  the  Quantock  Hills,  +  in  Somersetshire,  and  is  engraved 
in  the  Archceologia.  The  side  flanges  are,  however,  in  that  case  more 
lozenge  shaped,  and  project  to  obtuse  points  about  half  an  inch  above 
the  stop.  Two  palstaves  and  two  torques  were  on  that  occasion  found 
buried  together,  as  has  already  been  mentioned.  One  of  the  same  type 
(5f  inches)  from  Elsham,  Lincolnshire,  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

One  of  narroAver  form  (6£  inches)  but  of  the  same  character,  found 
with  socketed  celts  (some  of  them  octagonal  at  the  neck)  at  Haxey,  Lin- 
colnshire, is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S. 

*  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  283.  f  Vol.  xix.  pi.  viii.  p.  102. 

J  Arch.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  94. 


90 


WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


I  have  another  of  the  same  type,  but  imperfect,  which  was  found  with 
a  plain  bronze  bracelet,  and  what  from  the  description  must  have  been  a 
small  ribbon-like  gold  torque,  at  Winterhay  Green,  near  Ilminster.  I 
have  a  smaller  specimen  (5  inches)  from  the  Cambridge  Fens. 

The  unfinished  casting  for  a  palstave  of  the  type  Fig.  77  (5£  inches) 
was  found  with  four  looped  palstaves,  and  one  without  a  loop,  and  a 
spear-head  like  Fig.  409  at  Sherford,*  near  Taunton,  in  1879.  Some  of 
the  palstaves  have  a  raised  inverted  chevron  below  the  stop-ridge  by 
way  of  ornament. 

Palstaves  of  the  same  character,  but  without  the  loop,  have  already 
been  described  under  Fig.  63.  The  looped  type,  like  Fig.  77,  occurs  also 
in  Ir eland. f 

In  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London  is  a  heavy 
narrow  looped  palstave  (8  inches  by  2  inches)  with  this  ornamentation, 
found  in  Spain. 

The  central  rib  running  down  the  blade  is  in  many  cases  connected  with 
some  ornament  below  the  stop-ridge.  The  ornament  consists  usually  of 

raised  ribs,  either  straight  and  converg- 
ing, as  on  Fig.  78,  or  curved  so  as  to 
form  a  semi- elliptical  or  shield-shaped 
loop,  as  on  Fig.  79. 

The  original  of  Fig.  78  was  found  on 
OldburyHill,  Much  Marcle,  Hereford- 
shire, and  is  in  my  own  collection.  I 
have  a  smaller  example  of  the  same  type 
(5f  inches)  found  at  Hammerton,  Hun- 
tingdonshire, as  well  as  one  from  the 
Cambridge  Fens  (6  inches). 

One  (6f  inches)  found  at  Danesfield,J 
near  Bangor,  has  been  figured.  I  have 
seen  one  found  near  Chelmsford  (6f 
inches)  with  much  the  same  ornament. 
One  (6J  inches)  in  the  Museum  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries,  found  in  North- 
amptonshire, has  the  middle  rib  large, 
and  the  converging  ribs  much  slighter. 
There  are  some  which  have  only  a  slight 
central  ridge  on  the  blade,  and  are  orna- 
mented with  an  indented  chevron  below 
the  stop-ridge.  I  have  one  such  from 
the  Cambridge  Fens,  and  I  have  seen 
one  (6£  inches)  which  was  found  at 
Broomswell,  near  Woodbridge,  Suffolk. 

A  palstave  of  this  character  6  inches  long,  found  near  the  Upper 
Woodhouse  Farm,  Knighton,  Radnorshire,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia 
Cambremis.§  The  loop,  owing  to  a  defect  in  casting,  is  filled  with  metal. 
Six  others  (6  inches  long),  apparently  of  the  same  character,  were  found 
with  some  rough  castings  of  flanged  celts  at  Ehosnesney,||  near  Wrexham. 
Two  others  (6  inches)  were  found  with  a  chisel  and  a  spear-head,  like 

*  Pring,  "The  Brit,  and  Kom.  on  the  site  of  Taunton,"  p.  76,  pi.  iii. 

t  Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  381,  fig.  273. 

%  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  130.      §  4th  Ser.,  vol.  vi.  p.  20.       ||  Ibid.,  p.  71. 


Eg.  78.— Oldbury  Hill. 


PALSTAVES   WITH    SHIELD-LIKE   ORNAMENTS. 


91 


Fig.  407,  at  Broxton,  Cheshire,  and  are  in  the  collection  of  Sir  P.  de 
M.  Grey  Egerton,  Bart. 

The  type  is  found  upon  the  continent.  One  from  Normandy*  has  been 
engraved  by  the  Abbe  Cochet.  I  have  an  example  from  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Abbeville.  . 

One  from  near  Giessen,  in  the  museum  at  Darmstadt,  is  figured  by 
Lindenschmit.f 

That  with  the  shield-shaped  ornament  below  the  stop-ridge,  shown  in 
Fig.  79,  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was  found  near  Eoss.  The  central 
rib  runs  only  part  of  the  way  up  the  shield.  In  a  specimen  from  the 


Kg.  79.— Boss. 


Fig.  80.— Honington. 


Cambridge  Fens  (5f  inches)  it  stops  short  on  joining  the  ridge  forming  the 
shield. 

In  others  it  forms  a  heraldic  pale  running  through  the  shield,  as  in  five 
found  at  Waldron, J  Sussex. 

A  smaller  variety,  in  which  the  vertical  rib  does  not  extend  into  the 
shield,  is  shown  in  Fig.  80.  This  specimen  was  found  at  Honington, 
Suffolk. 

In  some  the  shield-shaped  ornament  consists  of  merely  two  triangular 
depressions.  A  palstave  of  this  class,  rather  narrow  at  the  stop-ridge,  and 
with  almost  triangular  blade,  is  shown  in  Fig.  81.  The  original,  which 
is  of  more  yellow  metal  than  ordinary,  was  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Ely,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Marshall  Fisher,  who  has  kindly 
allowed  me  to  figure  it.  In  one  such  from  Downton,  near  Salisbury,  in 
the  Blackmore  Museum,  the  faces  of  the  diaphragm  between  the  recesses 
for  the  handle  have  raised  ridges  or  ribs  running  along  nearly  the  whole 


;  La  Seine  Inf.,"  p.  14. 


t  "  A.  u.  h.  V.,"   vol.  i.  Heft  i.  Taf.  iv.  44. 


I  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ix.  p. 


92 


WINGED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


length,  five  on  one  face  and  six  on  the  other.  These  are  longer  than  in 
the  Nottingham  specimen  shortly  to  be  mentioned. 

In  one  found  at  Hotham  Carr  (of  inches),  Yorkshire,  and  now  in 
Canon  Green  well's  collection,  there  is  a  bead  running  down  the  blade 
between  the  two  depressions. 

This  shield-shaped  ornament  below  the  stop-ridge  is  well  shown  in  a 
palstave  from  Bottisham  Lode,  Cambridge,  engraved  as  Fig.  82.  What 
may  be  called  the  field  of  the  shield  is  on  one  face  nearly  flat ;  on  the 
other  there  are  indentations  on  either  side  of  the  central  ridge.  As  will 
be  seen,  the  extremities  of  the  cutting  edge  are  recurved,  both  in  this  and 
the  specimen  from  Ross  shown  in  Fig.  79.  It  does  not,  however,  appear  that 
the  instruments  were  originally  cast  in  this  form,  but  the  wide  segmental 


Fig.  81.— Ely. 


Fig.  82.— Bottisham. 


edge,  together  with  the  recurved  ends,  seem  to  be  the  result  of  a  constant 
hammering  out  of  the  blade,  in  order  to  renew  or  harden  the  edge. 
Though  the  hammer  was  thus  freely  used,  the  whetstone  was  employed 
both  to  polish  the  sides  of  the  blade  and  to  perfect  the  cutting  edge. 

I  have  a  French  palstave  found  near  Abbeville,  almost  identical  with 
this  in  size  and  form.  The  shield  ornament  is,  however,  replaced  by  two 
triangular  depressions  with  a  rib  left  between  them,  like  that  on  Fig.  81. 

In  some  specimens  the  ornamentation  consists  of  a  greater  or  less 
number  of  parallel  ribs  below  the  stop-ridge,  as  in  that  from  Nettleham,* 
Lincolnshire,  shown  in  Fig.  83.  With  this  were  found  two  others  and 
*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160,  whence  this  cut  is  reproduced. 


PALSTAVES    WITH   VERTICAL    RIBS    OX    BLADE. 


a  fourth  without  loop,  two  peculiar  socketed  celts,  two  spear-heads,  and  a 
ferrule,  which  will  be  subsequently  mentioned.  They  are  now  in  the 
British  Museum. 

A  nearly  similar  discovery  was  made  in  1860  near  Nottingham,*  where 
a  palstave  was  found  similarly  ornamented,  but  also  having  three  ribs  on 
the  diaphragm  above  the  stop-ridge.  It  was  accompanied  by  sixteen 
socketed  celts,  four  spear-heads,  a  tanged  knife,  fragments  of  swords,  a 
ferrule,  &c. 

In  Mr.  Brackstone's  collection  was  a  palstave  of  the  same  type,  found 
near  Ulleskelf,t  Yorkshire,  in  1849,  with  two  socketed  celts,  one  of  them 
of  the  peculiar  type  shown  in  Fig.  158. 

I  have  a  palstave  found  near  Dorchester,  Oxfordshire,  of  the  same  kind 
as  Fig.  83,  with  three  ribs  below  the  stop-ridge.  There  are  also  side 


Fig.  83.— Nettleham. 


Fig.  84.— Cambridge. 


flanges  at  that  part  of  the  blade  of  the  same  length  and  character  as  the 
ribs  in  the  middle  of  the  blade,  so  as  virtually  to  make  five  ribs. 

Canon  Greenwell  has  specimens  of  this  type  (6£  inches)  from  Llandysilio, 
Denbighshire,  and  (6  inches)  from  Ubbeston,  Suffolk.  One  (6£  inches) 
from  Keswick,  Cumberland,  in  the  same  collection  has  the  ribs  If  inches 
long.  Another  (6f  inches)  was  found  at  Vronheulog,J  Merionethshire. 

I  have  a  very  fine  and  perfect  specimen  (6f  inches)  from  the  Cambridge 
Fens,  on  which  the  three  ribs  stand  out  in  high  relief  and  converge  so  as 
to  form  a  triangle  below  the  stop-ridge  something  like  that  on  Fig.  78. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd.  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  332. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  p.  99,  and  Private  Plate. 

I  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  209. 


94 


WINGED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


A  palstave,  having  a  series  of  ribs  upon  the  diaphragm  as  well  as 
below  the  stop-ridge,  is  shown  in  Fig.  84.  In  this  instance  the  upper 
series  of  ribs  extends  nearly  to  the  top  of  the  instrument.  It  was  probably 
thought  that  they  assisted  in  making  the  haft  firm  to  the  blade.  This 
specimen,  which  has  been  much  cleaned,  is  in  the  British  Museum,  and 
as  it  formed  part  of  the  late  Mr.  Lichfield's  collection  it  was  probably 
found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Cambridge. 

The  form  of  palstave,  so  common  in  France  and  Germany,  with- 
out stop-ridge,  and  with  the  side  wings  hammered  over  so  as  to 
form  a  kind  of  semi-cylindrical  socket 
on  either  side  of  the  blade,  is  rare  in 
England.  A  specimen  from  the  great 
find  of  Carlton  Rode,*  Norfolk,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  85.  There  is  usually  at  the  top 
of  the  blade  a  sort  of  dovetailed  notch, 
which  may  possibly  have  been  made  of 
service  in  hafting  the  tool.  It  originates, 
however,  in  there  having  been  two  run- 
ners by  which  the  metal  was  conducted 
into  the  mould,  which  when  broken  off 
left  two  projections  at  the  top  of  the 
blade.  These  being  hammered  so  as  to 
round  the  external  angles  and  flatten  the 
ends  have  come  over  towards  each  other, 
and  made  what  was  a  notch  with  parallel 
sides  into  one  which  is  dovetailed. 
In  this  hoard  were  found  numerous  socketed  celts,  gouges,  chisels, 
hammers,  pieces  of  metal,  &c.  It  seems  to  have  been  the  stock  in 
trade  of  a  bronze-founder.  Some  other  specimens  from  the  same 
hoard  will  subsequently  be  described. 

Another  palstave  of  the  same  character  was  found,  with  many  socketed 
celts,  fragments  of  swords  and  daggers,  and  rough  metal,  at  Cumberlow,f 
near  Baldock,  Herts. 

Three  others  were  found  in  1806,  with  two  socketed  celts,  a  fragment  of 
a  sword,  three  lumps  of  raw  copper,  and  four  gold  armlets,  on  the  beach 
near  Eastbourne,  :[  immediately  under  Beachy  Head.  They  passed  with 
the  Payne  Knight  collection  into  the  British  Museum. 

That  found  "  in  an  old  wall,  in  Purbeck,"  §  with  the  socket  "  double  or 
divided  ly  a  partition"  as  described  by  Mr.  Hutchins  in  a  letter  to 
Bishop  Lyttelton  in  1768,  must  probably  have  been  of  this  kind. 

A  good  specimen  of  the  same  character  but  bent  (5f  inches),  as  well 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  494;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  80;  Arch.  Assof.  Journ.,  vol.  i. 
p.  51  ;  Smith's  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  105  ;  "  Catal.  Norwich  Mus.,"  No.  9. 

f  Journ.  Anthrop.  lust.,  vol.  vi.  p.  19-5.  i  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  363,  pi.  Ixviii. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  117.     See  Borlase,  "  Ant.  of  Cornw.,"  pi.  xx.  6. 


Fig.  85.—  cariton  Rode, 


IRON   PALSTAVES   IMITATED    FROM    BROXZE.  95 

as  part  of  another,  was  found  at  Wickham  Park,  Croydon,  together  with 
several  socketed  celts.  They  are  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

The  upper  part  of  a  palstave  of  this  character  was  found  with  socketed 
celts,  gouges,  &c.,  in  the  Hundred  of  Hoo,*  Kent.  It  has  been  thought 
that  this  was  cast  hollow  to  receive  a  central  prong,  but  the  cavity  is  pro- 
bably due  to  defective  casting.  A  broken  instrument  of  this  kind  was 
found  with  socketed  celts  and  metal  on  Kenidjack  Cliff,  f  Cornwall. 

Palstaves  of  this  type,  both  with  and  without  loops,  are  much  more 
abundant  on  the  Continent  than  in  Britain.  Numerous  examples  have 
been  found  in  France,  in  Rhenish  Prussia,  and  in  the  Lake  habitations 
of  Savoy  and  Switzerland. 

A  Danish  example  is  engraved  by  Worsaae,J  and  several  from  Germany  § 
by  Lindenschmit. 

Iron  palstaves  with  and  without  loops,  some  of  them  closely 
approximating  to  the  form  of  Fig.  85,  but  others  more  like  the 
ordinary  Italian  form  of  palstave,  with  a  broad  chisel-like  blade, 
have  been  found  in  the  cemetery  of  Hallstatt.  II  In  a  specimen  in 
my  own  collection  the  side  flanges  are  ornamented  with  transverse 
ribs,  precisely  like  those  on  some  of  the  bronze  palstaves  from  the 
same  locality.  In  one  instance  the  upper  part  with  the  flanges  is 
of  bronze,  and  the  lower  part  of  the  blade  of  iron  or  steel. 

This  form  of  instrument,  with  a  section  in  the  form  of  the  letter 
H  above,  though  easily  cast,  must  have  been  extremely  difficult  to 
forge ;  and  though  we  can  readily  trace  its  evolution  in  cast 
bronze,  it  so  ill  accorded  with  the  necessary  conditions  for  the 
profitable  working  of  malleable  iron  that  it  seems  soon  to  have 
disappeared  when  iron  came  into  general  use.  The  fact  of  the 
form  occurring  at  all  in  iron  shows  that  the  iron  instruments  were 
made  in  imitation  of  those  in  bronze,  and  not  the  bronze  in 
imitation  of  the  iron.  The  same  observation  holds  good  with  the 
iron  socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  and  swords  from  the  same 
cemetery. 

Looped  palstaves,  without  sufficient  details  being  given  of  their  types, 
are  recorded  to  have  been  found  in  Hare  wood  Square,  London,  ^[  Oxford,** 
Devonshire,!!  and  with  socketed  celts,  near  Kidwelly,JJ  Caermarthen. 

A  looped  palstave  rather  like  Fig.  75  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  a 
barrow  near  St.  Austell,§§  Cornwall,  in  1791,  but  no  details  are  given. 

Palstaves  provided  with  a  loop  on  either  side  are  of  rare  occurrence  in 
the  British  Islands. 

A  specimen  found  in  1871  at  Penvores,||||  near  Mawgan-in-Meneage, 

*  Arch.  Cant.,  vol.  xi.  p.  123.  f  Journ.  Roy.  Inst.  of  Cornw.,  No.  21. 

J  Oldsager,  fig.  184.  §  "Alt.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  i.  Taf.  iv. 

||  Von  Sacken,  "Das.  Grab.  v.  Hallst.,"  Taf.  vii. 

If  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  188.  **  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  186. 

ft  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  85.  JJ  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  96. 

§§  Borlase,  "  Naen.  Corn.,"  p.  188.  ||||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  398. 


96  WINGED   CELTS   AND   PALSTAVES.  [CHAP.  IV. 

Cornwall,  is  engraved  as  Fig.  86.     In  character  it  closely  resembles  that 
from  Brassington,  Fig.  76,  the  main  difference  consisting  in  its  second 


Fig.  86.— Penvores. 


Fig.  87.— West  Buckland. 


loop.  This  specimen,  with  another  from  Cornwall  and  two  from  Ireland, 
was  exhibited  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  in  1873,  and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  In  the  same  collection  is  another,  6^  inches 
long,  somewhat  lighter  below  the  stop-ridge,  and  having  the 
central  rib  less  fully  developed  on  the  blade.  It  was  found  in 
Somersetshire  in  1868,  in  making  the  Cheddar  Valley  line  of 
railway.  Another  found  in  1842,  near  South  Pethert  on,*  in  the 
same  county,  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Norris  at  that  place. 
Another  example,  shown  in  Fig.  87  was  found  at  West 
Buckland,  f  Somersetshire,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
W.  A.  Sanford.  With  it  were  discovered  a  torque  (Fig.  468,) 
and  a  bracelet,  (Fig.  481,)  and  also  some  charcoal  and  burnt 
bones,  but  there  was  no  sign  of  any  tumulus.  Irish  speci- 
mens will  be  subsequently  mentioned. 

Another  two-looped  instrument  of  a  different  character  was 
found  at  Bryn  Crug,]:  near  Carnarvon,  in  company  with  a 
tanged  knife  and  a  pin  with  three  holes  through  its  flat  head 
Pig.  88.          (Fig.  450).     It  is  shown  in  Fig.  88,  copied  on  a  reduced 
Bryn  Crag.  }     scale  from  the  Archaeological  Journal.    It  resembles  a  flanged 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  387 ;  vol.  x.  p.  247 ;  vol.  xxvii.  p.  230. 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  107.     For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  the 
Council  of  the  Royal  Archaeological  Institute.  J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  246. 


PALSTAVES   WITH    TWO    LOOPS.  97 

celt  except  in  having  that  part  of  the  blade  which  lies  between  the  side 
loops  raised  to  the  level  of  the  flanges. 

In  France  these  double-looped  palstaves  are  of  rare  occurrence,  but  I 
have  seen  one  much  like  -Fig.  86  which  was  found  in  the  Department  of 
Haute  Ariege,  and  is  now  in  the  Toulouse  Museum.  One  from  Tarbes* 
was  in  the  Exposition  des  Sciences  Anthropologiques, 
at  Paris  in  1878.  Another  was  found  at  Langoiran 
(Gironde). 

The  form  is  much  more  abundant  in  Spain,  but  in 
most  cases  both  the  blade  and  the  tang  are  long  and 
narrow  in  their  proportions.  An  engraving  of  one  from 
Andalusia  is  given  in  the  Archaological  Journal^  and  is 
here  by  permission  reproduced  as  Fig.  89.  I  have  one 
like  it  from  a  mine  in  the  Asturias.  One  rather  broader 
from  the  Sierra  de  Baza,J  Andalusia,  has  also  been 
figured.  A  broken  and  unfinished  double-looped  pal- 
stave from  Oviedo,  now  in  the  British  Museum,  has  a 
cup-shaped  projection  at  the  butt  end  which  has  been 
filled  with  lead,  possibly  in  old  times,  but  for  what 
purpose  it  is  impossible  to  say.  An  engraving  of  one 
much  like  it  has  been  published. §  There  are  several 
such  in  the  Museums  at  Madrid,  with  the  head  of  metal 
left  on  the  castings. 

The  forms  of  celts  and  palstaves  treated  of  in 
this  chapter  are  found  also  in  Scotland,  though 
perhaps  less  frequently  than  those  of  the  flat  and 
flanged  forms  described  in  the  previous  chapter. 

Many  so  closely  resemble  English  specimens 
that  it  is  needless  to  give  representations  of  them, 
as  a  reference  to  the  figures  in  the  preceding  pages 
will  sufficiently  indicate  their  character.  AndltoL  * 

In  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh  is  a  winged  celt  4£  inches 
long  much  like  Fig.  56,  which  was  found  on  the  top  of  a  hill  called  Lord 
Arthur's  Cairn,  in  the  parish  of  Tullvnessle,||  Aberdeenshire.  Another, 
6  inches  long,  with  the  wings  somewhat  curved  inwards,  was  found  at 
Kerswell,^]"  in  the  parish  of  Oarnwath,  Lanarkshire.  Another  winged 
celt,  4  inches  long,  was  ploughed  up  on  the  estate  of  Barcaldine,**  Argyle- 
shire. 

In  the  same  Museum  are  also  winged  celts  (5  inches)  from  Birrens- 
wark,  Dumfriesshire,  and  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Peebles,  much  like 
that  from  Eeeth  (Fig.  56). 

A  chisel-shaped  celt,  in  character  much  like  Fig.  55,  but  having  a  slight 
stop-ridge,  was  found  in  Burreldale  Moss, ft  Keith  Hall,  Aberdeenshire, 

*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  xiv.  p.  192.  t  Vol.  vi.  p.  69,  369 

i  Gongora  y  Martinez,  "Ant.  preh.  de  Andal.,"  p.  110.  Arch.  Journ.,  xxvii.  p.  237. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvii.  p.  230. 

||   Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  30  ;  Wilson's  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  fig.  58. 

IF  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  21.  **  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  203. 

ft  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xi.  p.  153. 

H 


98 


WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  TV. 


and  has  been  engraved  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,  to 
whom  I  am  indebted  for  the  use  of  Fig.  90. 

In  a  palstave  (6f  inches)  from  Kilnotrie,*  Crossmichael,  Kircudbright, 
the  lateral  flanges  are  continued  below  the  stop-ridge,  and  there  is  a 
median  ridge  down  the  blade. 

In  some  palstaves  in  the  British  Museum,  found  between  Balcarry  and 
Kilfillan,  Wigtonshire,  the  stop-ridges  instead  of  being  at  right  angles  to 
the  face  of  the  blade  shelve  outwards.  One  of  them  is  engraved  as  Fig. 
91.  The  sides  are  hammered  into  V-shaped  depressions  forming  a  kind 
of  fern-leaf  pattern  along  them. 

Two  of  these  palstaves  are  figured  on  a  larger  scale  in  the  Ayr  and 
Wigton  Collections.] 

Another  palstave  from  Windshiel,  near  Dunse,  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh,  has  also  the  flanges  somewhat  hammered  over. 


Fig.  90.—  Burreldale  Moss.        J 


Fig.  91. -Balcarry.        J 


A  palstave  without  loop,  and  which  from  the  engraving  appears  to  have 
a  well-marked  stop-ridge  and  to  have  the  side  flanges  much  hammered 
over,  is  said  to  have  been  found  near  Tintot-top,J  in  Clydesdale.  The 
description,  however,  says  that  it  has  no  stop,  otherwise  the  figure  would 
almost  justify  an  attribution  of  the  instrument  to  Southern  Germany 
rather  than  to  Scotland.  Another  of  much  the  same  character,  but  with- 
out any  stop-ridge,  has  been  figured  from  Baron  Clerk's  §  collection  as 
having  been  found  in  Scotland. 

Palstaves  with  a  side  loop  have  been  said  ||  to  be  common  in  Scotland ; 

*  Wilson's  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  382,  fig.  56 ;  "Cat.  Ant.  Mus.  Ed.,"  E. 
48.  t  Vol.  ii.  pp.  8  and  9. 

J  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113,  pi.  viii.  No.  2 ;  Gough's  "Camden,"  vol.  i.  p.  ccvi. 

§  Gordon's  "Itin.  Septent.,"  p.  116,  pi.  1.  6. 

||  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  21 ;  Wilson,  "  Preh.  Ann,  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  383. 


SCOTTISH    PALSTAVES. 


but  this  can  hardly  be  the  case,  as  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries  of  Scotland  there  are  no  authenticated  examples. 

One  from  Aikbrae,*  Lanarkshire  (6J  inches),  like  Fig.  77,  has  been 
figured.  Wilson  gives  another  example  like  Fig.  78,  but  does  not 
say  where  it  was  found.  The  "spade"  he  gives  as  his  Fig.  59  is  in  all 
probability  Italian. 

A  palstave  rather  like  that  from  Balcarry,  Fig.  91,  but  with  a  loop,  is 
figured  by  Gordon  f  as  having  been  found  in  Scotland. 

What  may  be  classed  as  a  celt  with  two  side  loops, 
or  possibly  as  a  chisel,  is  said  to  have  been  found 
in  the  year  1810  in  a  barrow  near  Pettycur,  J  Fife- 
shire.  It  is  described  as  very  strong,  and  the  bend 
in  the  upper  part,  as  seen  in  Fig.  92,  is  thought  to 
be  accidental.  Wilson  describes  it  as  a  crowbar  or 
lever,  but  as  its  total  length  is  only  7-J  inches  it  can 
hardly  be  classed  among  such  instruments. 

A  somewhat  similar  tool,  but  without  holes  in  the 
side  stops  (7|  inches),  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal 
Irish  Academy.  § 


,.,, 


Turning  now  to  the  instruments  of  this  class 
discovered  in  Ireland,  I  may  observe  that  it  is 
so  difficult  to  draw  the  line  between  the  flanged 
celts,  tapering  both  ways  from  a  central  ridge, 
and  those  which  have  a  slight  projecting  stop- 
ridge  upon  them,  that  some  Irish  instruments 
of  the  latter  class  have  already  been  mentioned 
in  the  preceding  chapter,  to  which  the  reader 
is  referred  for  the  more  highly  ornamented 
varieties.  Other  Irish  types  have  also  been  in- 
cidentally cited. 

Some  of  the  Irish  palstaves  much  resemble 
English  and  Scottish  types,  but  generally  speak- 
ing there  are  sufficient  peculiarities  in  their  forms       Fig.  92.—  Pettycur.    * 
to  enable  a  practised  observer  to  recognise  their 
origin.     For  several   other  varieties  of  form,  besides  those  men- 
tioned in  the   following  pages,  the  reader  is  referred  to  Wilde's 
Catalogue. 

Winged  celts  without  a  stop-ridge,  like  Fig.  53,  have  occa- 
sionally been  found  in  Ireland,  and  one  is  figured  by  Wilde.  ||  I 
have  one  (5^  inches)  from  Armoy,  Co.  Antrim.  The  wide-spreading 
celt  with  a  slight  stop-ridge  and  segmental  band  upon  the  blade, 

*  Arch.  Assoe.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  21.     f  "  Itin.  Septent.,"  p.  116,  pi.  1.  4. 
%  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  377  ;  "  Cat.  Mus.  Arch.  Imt.  Ed.,"  p.  27  ;  Wilson,  "  Preh. 
Ann.  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  386. 

§  "  Catal.,"  p.  521,  fig.  394.  ||  «  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  373,  fig.  258. 

H  2 


100 


WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


like  Ficr  50,  also  occurs.  A  remarkably  fine  specimen  from  West- 
meath  with  punctured  ornaments  on  the  wings  and  at  the  lower 
margin  of  the  band  has  been  engraved  by  Wilde.*  Some  are 
without  the  segmental  band. 

The  type  of  Fig.  54  has  also  been  found.  I  have  a  specimen 
(6  inches)  from  Ballinamallard,  near  Enniskillen. 

Palstaves  without  a  stop-ridge,  and  with  broad  lozenge-shaped  wings 
like  Pig.  56,  are  of  rare  occurrence.  One  of  nearly  the  same  type  but 
having  a  low  projecting  ridge  between  the  wings,  is  shown  in 


A 


Fig.  93.-Ireland. 


I  have  another  from  Annoy,  Co.  Antrim  (6  inches),  with  a  still  slighter 
transverse  ridge,  which  forms  the  upper  boundary  to  a  shield-shaped  pro- 
jection on  the  blade,  on  which  is  a  central  vertical  ridge  with  two  others 
on  each  side  less  definitely  marked.  The  base  of  the  shield  is  pointed. 

A  not  uncommon  type  has  a  very  high  stop-ridge  coming  up  to  the 
level  of  the  side  wings,  the  blade  above  the  stop-ridge  being  somewhat 
thinner  than  it  is  below.  An  example  is  shown  in  Fig.  94. 

I  have  another  from  County  Antrim,  in  which  the  lower  part  of  the 
blade  has  a  slight  median  vertical  ridge. 

In  a  palstave  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,!  with  ellip- 
tical wings,  a  long  fusiform  boss  has  been  cast  in  the  centre  of  the  blade. 
*  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  373,  fig.  262.  f  Op.  cit.,  p.  373,  fig.  259. 


IBISH    PALSTAVES. 


101 


In   another  instrument    in   the   same  collection  the  whole  blade   is 
thickened  out  so  as  to  form  the  stop-ridge,  as  will  be  seen  in  Fig.  95. 

In  other  cases  the  ridge  of  the  wings  is 
continued  as  a  moulding  on  the  face  of  the 
blade,  so  as  to  enclose  a  space  below  the  stop- 
ridge.  From  the  base  of  this  there  sometimes 
proceeds  a  vertical  rib,  as  seen  in  Fig.  96. 

Inverted  chevrons  by  way  of  ornament 
below  the  stop-ridge  are  not  uncommon, 
sometimes  with  a  vertical  rib  in  addition. 

Such  compartments  are  often  seen  on  the 
winged  celts,  with  only  a  slight  stop-ridge. 
Fig.  97  shows  an  example  from  Lanes- 
borough,  Co.  Longford,  now  in  the  collection 
of  Canon  Green  well,  F.E.S.  The  compart- 
ment is  ornamented  with  vertical  punch 
marks.  The  outside  of  the  wings  is  faceted 
after  a  fashion  not  unusual  in  Ireland,  but 
there  is  here  a  slight  shoulder  at  the  base 
of  the  central  facet  which  may  have  assisted 
in  securing  the  blade  to  the  handle.  On  a 
specimen  at  Dublin  there  are  on  the  other- 
wise flat  sides  elevated  transverse  ridges,  which,  as  Sir  W.  Wilde* 
has  pointed  out,  may  have  served  "to  keep  the  tying  in  its  place." 


Fig.  95.— Ireland. 


Fig.  96.-North  of  Ireland.        i  Fig.  97.-Lanesborough.        i 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  K.  I.  A.,"  p.  373,  fig.  260. 


102 


WI1X7GED    CELTS    AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


The  sides  of  other  specimens  of  much  the  same  type  are  otherwise 
fashioned  and  ornamented.  In  Fig.  98  is  shown  a  celt  from  Trillick,  Co. 

Tyrone,  on  the  sides  of  which  a  kind  of 
fern-leaf  pattern  has  been  hammered, 
or  rather  punched,  not  unlike  the  carv- 
ing on  one  of  the  stones  in  the  great 
chambered  tumulus  of  New  Grange. 
The  shield  plate  has  two  vertical  hol- 
lows worked  on  it. 

The  side  of  a  celt  ornamented  in  the 
same  manner  is  engraved  by  Wilde.* 

A  small  palstave,  with  two  vertical 
grooves  in  the  blade,  is  shown  in  Fig.  99. 

Another  form  of  winged  celt,  with  a 
low  stopriidge  and  with  a  vertical  rib 
passing  through  an  inverted  chevron 
on  the  blade,  is  shown  in  Fig.  100. 
The  original  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
Eobert  Day,  F.S.A. 

The  same  style  of  ornament  occurs 
on  palstaves  of  other  forms. f 

In  some  instances,  there  is  in  the 

centre  of  the  stop-ridge  a  kind  of  bracket  on  the  blade,  and  the  side  wings 
are  hammered  over  so  as  to  form  an  imperfect  socket.  A  small  example 


of  the  kind  is  shown  in  Fig.  101.    I  have  a  larger  specimen  (4£  inches) 
from  Trillick,  Co.  Tyrone.     VallanceyJ  engraves  a  palstave  of  this  type. 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  379,  fig.  270.  f  VaUancey,  vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  7. 

+  Vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  2. 


LOOPED    IRISH    PALSTAVES. 


103 


Others  with  flat  blades  and  no  brackets  have  the  side  flanges  hammered 
over  in  the  same  manner. 

A  fine  example,  in  which  the  conical  bracket  dies  into  the  stop-ridge  and 
side  flanges,  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

Palstaves  with  a  loop  at  the  side  are  not  of  such  frequent  occurrence  in 
Ireland  as  those  without.  Wilde  *  has  engraved  a  specimen  (6f  inches)  like 
Fig.  77  as  well  as  that  f  which  I  have  here  shown  on  a  larger  scale  as 
Fig.  102.  This  latter  has  the  wings  well  hammered  over  at  the  base,  so 
as  to  form  a  kind  of  socket  on  each  side  of  the  blade.  It  differs,  however, 
from  the  English  and  foreign  specimens  like  Fig.  85  in  having  a  well- 
marked  shoulder  or  stop  on  the  blade  between  the  wings. 

Palstaves  of  nearly  the  same  character,  but  without  the  loop,  have 
already  been  mentioned  as  found  both  in  Ireland  and  Scotland.  Others, 


?.  102.— Ireland.        £  Fig.  103.— Ireland.        £  Fig.  104.— Ireland.        J 

with  loops  like  Fig.  103,  have  a  bracket   on  the  blade  between   the 


A  remarkable  form  with  slight  side  flanges  and  no  stop-ridge,  from  the 
Dublin  Museum,  is  shown  in  Fig.  104.  It  is  No.  630  in  Wilde's  Cata- 
logue. The  sides  have  deep  diagonal  notches  upon  them  and  the  upper 
part  of  each  face  is  chequered,  perhaps  in  order  to  assist  in  steadying 
the  blade  in  its  handle. 

Another  noteworthy  palstave,  found  at  Miltown,  Co.  Dublin,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  105.  In  this  the  side  wings  are  not  hammered  over,  and  the  stop  is 
supported  by  a  conical  bracket.  The  shoulders,  instead  of  being  nearly 
square  to  the  midrib,  are  inclined  upwards  at  an  angle  of  nearly  45°,  so  as  to 
form  receptacles  in  which  the  wedge-shaped  ends  of  the  split  handle  would 
be  held  tight  against  the  blade.  These  inclined  stops  have  been  observed 
in  other  palstaves  of  different  forms,  and  Sir  W.  Wilde  J  has  called  atten- 
tion to  them  in  connection  with  a  palstave  much  like  that  now  under 
consideration,  but  without  any  projection  or  loop  on  the  side.  The  most 
remarkable  feature  in  the  Miltown  example  is  a  projecting,  slightly 

*  P.  381,  fig.  273.        *  P.  379,  fig.  265.       J  "  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  377,  fig.  263. 


104 


WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES. 


[CHAP.  iv. 


curved  spike  or  neb  placed  near  the  top  of  the  blade  rather  above  the 
position  usually  occupied  by  the  loop.  At  first  sight  it  looks  like  an 
imperfect  loop,  but,  on  examination,  it  is  evident  that  the  casting  is  per- 
fect ;  and,  on  consideration,  it  seems  clear  that  this  projection  would  serve 
quite  as  well  as  a  loop  for  receiving  a  cord  to  hold  the  blade  back  upon 
its  haft,  while  for  the  actual  tying  it  would  be  more  convenient,  as  the  cord 
would  have  merely  to  be  passed  over  a  hook,  and  not  to  be  threaded 
through  a  loop.  In  a  somewhat  similar  palstave  (3f  inches)  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy*  there  is  also  a  projecting  neb,  but  more 

semicircular  in  outline.  I  am  not 
sure  that  it  was  intended  for  the 
same  purpose.  A  looped  palstave 
of  this  type,  but  with  the  bottom  of 
the  side  socket  more  circular,  is  en- 
graved by  Vallancey.f 

Some  of  the  socketed  celts  from 
the  Bologna  hoard  have  curved  nebs 
on  each  side  instead  of  rings.  In- 
struments of  the  same  character, 
also  from  Italy,  have  been  engraved 
by  De  Bonstetten,|  Schreiber,§  and 
Caylus.ll 

Double-looped  palstaves,  with  a 
loop  on  either  side,  and  in  character 
like  Fig.  86,  are  almost  or  quite  as 
rare  in  Ireland  as  in  England.  The 
only  specimen  engraved  by  Wilde  ^f 
is  in  the  collection  of  Lord  Talbot 
de  Malahide.  It  is  6£  inches  long, 
with  the  loops  not  quite  symmetrical. 
It  was  supposed  to  be  unique.  I 
have,  however,  another  specimen  of 
this  type  (6f  inches)  found  at  Bal- 
lincollig,**  Co.  Cork,  in  1854,  which 
was  formerly  in  the  collection  of  the 

Eev.  Thomas  Hugo,  F.S.A.  It  so  closely  resembles  Fig.  86  that  it  is  not 
worth  while  to  engrave  it. 

Another  remarkable  and  indeed  unique  instrument,  in  the  Museum  of 
the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,  ff  is  shown  in  Fig.  106.  It  is  like  a  flat  celt, 
but  has  grooves  and  stops  at  the  side  like  a  palstave  with  a  transverse 
edge.  Below  the  stops  are  two  loops.  The  sides  below  the  stops  are 
ornamented  with  transverse  lines,  and  on  the  face  here  shown  there  is  a 
dotted  kind  of  cartouche  below  the  stops,  and  a  square  compartment 
chequered  in  lozenges  above  them.  This  latter  is  wanting  on  the  other 
face,  but  the  corresponding  cartouche  below  is  divided  into  small  lozenges 
alternately  hatched  and  plain. 

t  Vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  1. 

See  also  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  377 ;  vol. 
xxi.  p.  100. 

§  "Dieeher.  Streitkeile,"  Taf.  ii.  8.  ||  "  Recueil  d'Ant.,"  pi.  xciv.  1. 

f  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  382,  fig.  274 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  194. 
**  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  222. 
tt  "  Catal.,"  p.  521,  fig.  393 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  p.  91,  pi.  No.  1. 


Fig.  105.— MUtown. 


;  Catal.,"  p.  433,  No.  641. 
+    '  Eecueil  d'Antiq.  Suisses,"  pi.  ii. 


IRISH    PALSTAVES    WITH    TRAKSVERSE    EDGE. 


105 


Another  Irish  instrument  of  nearly  the  same  form,  but  without  the 
grooves  and  stops  at  the  sides,  is  in  the  Bell  Collection  in  the  Antiquarian 


Fig.  106.— Ireland. 


Fig.  107.— Ireland. 


Museum  at  Edinburgh  ;  but  its  exact  place  of  finding  is  uncertain.     It  is 
shown  in  Fig.   107,  and,  like 
that  last  described,  has  each  of 
its  faces  ornamented  in  a  dif- 
ferent manner. 

The  palstaves  with  a  trans- 
verse edge  are  of  more  common 
occurrence  in  Ireland  than  in 
England,  but  are  even  there 
very  rare.  That  engraved  as 
Fig.  108  was  formerly  in  the 
collection  of  the  Eev.  Thomas 
Hugo,  F.S.A.*  A  similar  tool 
is  figured  by  Vallancey.f 

The  smaller  specimen  shown 
in  Fig.  109  was  found  near 
Ballymena,  Co.  Antrim,  and  is 
in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Eobert 
Day,  F.S.A.  I  have  one  from 
the  North  of  Ireland  (4  inches) 
with  the  stops  less  distinct. 

Another  Irish  specimen  (3 
inches)  is  in  the  British  Museum.  In  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy  are  several  varying  in  length  from  2|-  inches  to  5£  inches. 
They  are  classed  by  "Wilde  J  among  the  chisels. 


Fig.  108—  Ireland. 


Fig.  109.—  Ballymena.  J 


Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  156. 

J  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  521,  fig.  397. 


t  Vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  6. 


106  WINGED   CELTS   AND    PALSTAVES.  [CHAP.  IV. 

In  describing  the  various  forms  illustrated  by  the  figures,  I  have 
from  time  to  time  called  attention  to  the  analogies  which  they 
present  with  other  European  forms,  and  it  is  hardly  necessary  to 
make  any  broad  comparison  of  British  palstaves  and  winged  celts 
with  those  of  other  European  countries.  It  would  indeed  be  a 
difficult  task  to  attempt,  as  in  each  country,  if  not  in  several  dis- 
tricts in  each  country,  the  instruments  of  this  kind  are  characterised 
by  some  local  peculiarity. 

Perhaps  it  will  be  more  instructive  to  mention  certain  conti- 
nental forms  which  are  conspicuous  by  their  absence  in  Britain. 

We  have  not,  for  instance,  the  southern  French  form  with  a 
kind  of  contracted  waist  and  broad  side  flanges  or  rounded  wings 
in  the  middle  of  the  blade  ;  nor,  again,  the  long  narrow  form 
almost  resembling  a  marrow  spoon  ;  nor  that  with  the  almost 
circular  blade,  much  like  an  ancient  mirror.  Nor  have  we  the 
German  form,  with  the  V-shaped  stop-ridge,  nor  that  in  which  the 
stop-ridge  forms  a  circular  collar  above  a  blade  with  beadings 
along  the  sides.  Nor  have  we  the  common  Italian  form,  with  the 
blade  like  a  long  spud  ;  nor,  again,  the  narrow  Scandinavian  form, 
which  is  often  highly  decorated. 

And  yet,  in  comparing  the  instruments  described  in  the  present 
chapter  with  those  of  neighbouring  countries,  and  especially  of 
France,  it  will  at  once  be  remarked  that,  as  might  have  been 
reasonably  expected,  the  closest  analogies  are  to  be  observed 
between  some  of  those  of  England  and  France,  while  in  the  more 
peculiarly  Scottish  and  Irish  types  the  resemblances  are  more 
remote.  It  must,  however,  be  borne  in  mind  that  there  is  good 
evidence  in  the  shape  of  moulds  and  bronze-founders'  hoards,  such 
as  will  subsequently  be  mentioned,  to  prove  that  these  instruments 
were  cast  in  various  parts  of  this  country  ;  so  that,  though  some 
palstaves  may  be  of  foreign  origin,  yet,  as  a  rule,  it  was  the 
fashion  of  the  objects  rather  than  the  objects  themselves  for  which 
the  inhabitants  of  Britain  were  indebted  to  foreign  intercourse. 
Even  in  the  area  now  embraced  by  France  there  does  not  appear 
to  have  been  any  single  centre  of  manufacture,  but,  taken  as  a 
group,  the  palstaves  of  the  South,  the  North,  and  the  North-west 
of  France  present  some  distinguishing  characteristics.  The  same 
is  the  case  with  the  socketed  celts  of  that  country,  the  English 
representatives  of  which  will  be  discussed  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  V. 

SOCKETED     CELTS. 

THE  class  of  celts  cast  in  such  a  manner  as  to  have  a  socket  for 
receiving  the  haft  is  numerously  represented  in  the  British  Isles. 
In  this  form  of  instrument  the  haft  was  actually  imbedded  in  the 
blade,  whereas  in  the  case  of  the  flat  and  flanged  celts,  and  of  the 
so-called  palstaves,  the  blade  was  imbedded  in  the  handle,  so  that 
the  terms,  "  the  recipient "  and  "  the  received,"  originally  given 
to  the  two  classes  by  Dr.  Stukeley,  are  founded  on  a  well-marked 
distinction,  and  are  worthy  of  being  rescued  from  oblivion. 

That  the  recipient  class  is  of  later  introduction  than  the  received 
is  evident  from  several  considerations.  In  the  first  place,  a  flat 
blade  not  only  approaches  most  nearly  in  form  to  the  stone 
hatchets  or  celts  which  it  was  destined  to  supersede,  but  it  also 
requires  much  less  skill  in  casting  than  the  blade  provided  with  a 
socket.  For  casting  the  flat  celts  there  was,  indeed,  no  need  of  a 
mould  formed  of  two  pieces  ;  a  simple  recess  of  the  proper  form 
cut  in  a  stone,  or  formed  in  loam,  being  sufficient  to  give  the  shape 
to  a  flat  blade  of  metal,  which  could  be  afterwards  wrought  into 
the  finished  form  by  hammering.  And  secondly,  as  will  subse- 
quently be  seen,  a  gradual  development  can  be  traced  from  the  flat 
celt,  through  those  with  flanges  and  wings,  to  the  palstave  form, 
with  the  wings  hammered  over  so  as  to  constitute  two  semi-cir- 
cular sockets,  one  on  each  side  of  the  blade  ;  while  on  certain  of  the 
socketed  celts  flanges  precisely  similar  to  those  of  the  palstaves  have 
been  cast  by  way  of  ornament  on  the  sides,  and  what  was  thus 
originally  a  necessity  in  construction  has  survived  as  a  superfluous 
decoration.  There  is  at  least  one  instance  known  of  the  inter- 
mediate form  between  a  palstave  with  pocket-like  recesses  on 
each  side  of  a  central  plate  and  a  celt  with  a  single  socket.  In 
the  museum  at  Trent  *  there  is  an  instrument  in  which  the  socket 

*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  iii.  p.  395. 


108  SOCKETED  CELTS.  [CHAP.  V. 

is  divided  throughout  its  entire  length  into  two  compartments 
with  a  plate  between,  and,  as  Professor  Strobel  says,  resembling  a 
palstave  with  the  wings  on  each  side  united  so  as  to  form  a 
socket  on  each  side.  The  evolution  of  the  one  type  from  the 
other  is  thus  doubly  apparent,  and  it  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that 
though  palstaves  with  the  wings  bent  over  are,  as  has  already  been 
stated,  of  rare  occurrence  in  the  British  Islands,  yet  socketed  celts, 
having  on  their  faces  the  curved  wings  in  a  more  or  less  rudimentary 
condition,  are  by  no  means  unfrequently  found.  The  inference 
which  may  be  drawn  from  this  circumstance  is  that  the  discovery 
of  the  method  of  casting  socketed  celts  was  not  made  in  Britain  but 
in  some  other  country,  where  the  palstaves  with  the  converging 
wings  were  abundant  and  in  general  use,  and  that  the  first  socketed 
celts  employed  in  this  country,  or  those  which  served  as  patterns 
for  the  native  bronze-founders,  were  imported  from  abroad. 

Although  socketed  celts,  with  distinct  curved  wings  upon  their 
faces,  are  probably  the  earliest  of  their  class,  yet  it  is  impossible  to 
say  to  how  late  a  period  the  curved  lines,  which  eventually  became 
the  representatives  of  the  wings,  may  not  have  come  down.  This 
form  of  ornamentation  was  certainly  in  use  at  the  same  time  as 
other  forms,  as  we  know  from  the  hoards  in  which  socketed  celts 
of  different  patterns  have  been  found  together.  As  has  already 
been  recorded,  the  socketed  form  has  also  been  frequently  found 
associated  with  palstaves,  especially  with  those  of  the  looped 
variety. 

The  form  of  the  tapering  socket  varies  considerably,  the  section 
being  in  some  instances  round  or  oval,  and  in  other  cases  present- 
ing every  variety  of  form  between  these  and  the  square  or  rect- 
angular. There  is  usually  some  form  of  moulding  or  beading 
round  the  mouth  of  the  celt,  below  which  the  body  before  expand- 
ing to  form  the  edge  is  usually  round,  oval,  square,  rectangular, 
or  more  or  less  regularly  hexagonal  or  octagonal.  The  decora- 
tions generally  consist  of  lines,  pellets,  and  circles,  cast  in  relief 
upon  the  faces,  and  much  more  rarely  on  the  sides.  Not  unfre- 
quently there  is  no  attempt  at  decoration  beyond  the  moulding  at 
the  top.  The  socketed  celts  are,  almost  without  exception,  devoid 
of  ornaments  produced  by  punches  or  hammer  marks,  such  as  are 
so  common  on  the  solid  celts  and  palstaves.  This  may  be  due  to 
their  being  more  liable  to  injury  from  blows  owing  to  the  thinness 
of  the  metal  and  to  their  being  hollow.  They  are  nearly  always 
provided  with  a  loop  at  one  side,  though  some  few  have  been 


THEIR   EVOLUTION    FROM    PALSTAVES. 


109 


cast  without  loops.  These  are  usually  of  small  size,  and  were 
probably  used  as  chisels  rather  than  as  hatchets.  A  very  few  have 
a  loop  on  each  side. 

The  types  are  so  various  that  it  is  hard  to  make  any  proper 
classification  of  them.  I  shall,  therefore,  take  them  to  a  certain 
extent  at  hazard,  keeping  those,  however,  together  which  most  nearly 
approximate  to  each  other.  I  begin  with  a  specimen  showing  in  a 
very  complete  manner  the  raised  wings  already  mentioned. 

This  instrument  formed  part  of  a  hoard  of  celts  and  fragments  of  metal 
found  at  High  Roding,  Essex,  and 
now  in  the  British  Museum,  and  is 
representedinFig.110.  With  it 
was  one  with  two  raised  pellets 
beneath  the  moulding  round  the 
mouth,  and  one  with  three  longi- 
tudinal ribs.  The  others  were 
plain. 

Another  (4  inches),  with  a  treble 
moulding  at  the  top,  from  Water- 
ingbury,  Kent,  was  in  the  Douce 
and  Meyrick  Collections,  and  is 
now  also  in  the  British  Museum. 

I  have  a  German  celt  of  this 
type,  but  without  the  pellets, 
found  in  Thuringia.  Others  are 
engraved  by  Lindenschmit,*  Mon- 
telius,f  and  Chantre.J  I  have  a 
good  example  from  Lutz  (Eure 
et  Loir). 

On  many  French  celts  the  wings 
are  shown  by  depressed  lines  or 
grooves  on  the  faces.  I  have  spe- 
cimens from  a  hoard  found  at 
Dreuil,  near  Amiens,  and  from 
Lusancy,  near  Rheims.  Others 
with,  the  curved  lines  more  or  less 
distinct  have  been  found  in  va- 
rious parts  of  France. 

There  is  an  example  from  Maulin  in  the  Museum  at  Namur,  and  a 
Dutch  example  is  in  the  Museum  at  Assen. 

In  Fig.  1 1 1  is  shown  a  larger  celt  in  my  own  collection,  found  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Dorchester,  Oxon.  The  wing  ornament  no  longer  con- 
sists of  a  solid  plate,  but  the  outlines  of  the  wings  of  the  palstave  are 
shown  by  two  bold  projecting  beads  which  extend  over  the  sides  of  the 
celt  as  well  as  the  faces.  The  socket  is  circular  at  the  mouth,  but  the 
neck  of  the  instrument  below  the  moulding  is  subquadrate  in  section.  In 
the  socket  are  two  small  projecting  longitudinal  ribs,  probably  intended 


Fig.  110.— High 
Roding.       |. 


Fig.  111.— Dorchester, 
Oxon.       | 


*  "  Alt.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  ii.  Taf.  ii.  5. 
t  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.  p.  293. 


%  "  Age  du  Br.,"  ptie.  i.  p.  59. 


110 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


to  aid  in  steadying  the  haft.     Such  projections  are  not  very  uncommon, 
and  are  sometimes  more  than  two  in  number. 

A  celt  ornamented  in  a  similar  manner,  but  with  two  raised  bands  near 
the  mouth,  was  found  with  several  other  socketed  celts  and  some  pal- 
staves with  the  wings  bent  over  at  Cumberlow,*  near  Baldock,  Herts. 
Some  of  these  are  in  the  British  Museum. 

Another  with  two  small  pellets  between  the  curved  lines  was  found 
in  a  hoard  at  Beddington,f  Surrey. 

Fig.  112  represents  another  celt  of  much  the  same  character,  but  with  a 
bolder  moulding  at  top,  and  a  slight  projecting  bead  all  round  the  instru- 
ment just  below  the  two  curved  lines  representing  the  palstave  wings, 
which  on  these  celts  have  just  the  appearance  of  heraldic  "flanches." 

On  the  face  not  shown  there  is 
a  triangular  projection  at  the 
top  like  a  "pile  in  chief"  be- 
tween the  flanches.  Inside  the 
socket  there  are  two  longitudinal 
projections  as  in  the  last.  The 
original  of  this  figure,  which  has 
been  broken  and  repaired  with 
the  edge  of  another  celt,  is  in 
the  Blackmore  Museum  at  Salis- 
bury, and  was  probably  found 
in  Wilts. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  an 
example  of  this  type  (4  inches) 
which  has  on  one  face  only  a 
pellet  in  the  upper  part  of  the 
compartment  between  the  two 
"flanches."  It  was  found  at 
Hounslow. 

Another  (4  inches)  from  the 
Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Durham,  is 
now  in  the  collection  of  Canon 
Grreenwell,  F.K.S.  I  have  one 
with  the  pattern  less  distinct  from 
a  hoard  found  in  the  Barking 
Marshes,  Essex,  in  1862.  A  celt 
much  of  the  same  pattern,  but 
without  the  transverse  line  below  the  flanches,  was  found  on  Plumpton 
Plain,  J  near  Lewes. 

The  same  type  occurs  in  France.  I  have  examples  from  a  hoard  found 
at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens.  The  same  ornament  is  often  seen  on  Hungarian 
celts,  though  usually  without  the  lower  band. 

In  Fig.  113  is  shown  one  of  the  celts  from  the  hoard  discovered  in  the 
Isle  of  Harty,§  Kent,  to  which  I  shall  have  to  make  frequent  reference. 
Besides  eight  more  or  less  perfect  unornamented  socketed  celts,  various 

*  Journ.  Anthrop.  Inst.,  vol.  vi.  p.  195. 

t  "  Surrey  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.,"  vol.  vi. ;  Anderson's  "  Croydon  Preh.  and  Rom.."  p.  11. 
pi.  ii.  1. 

%  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  268,  fig.  8. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  408  ;  "  Cong.  Preh."  Stockholm  vol.,  1874,  p.  444. 


Fig.  112.— Wilts. 


WITH    CURVED    LINES    ON    THE    FACE. 


Ill 


hammers,  tools,  and  moulds,  five  celts  of  this  type  were  found.  Although 
so  closely  resembling  each  other  that  they  were  probably,  cast  in  the  same 
mould,  in  fact  in  that  which  was  found  at  the  same  time,  there  is  a  con- 
siderable difference  observable  among  them,  especially  in  the  upper  part 
above  the  loop.  In  the  one  shown  in  the  figure  there  are  three  distinct 
beaded  mouldings  above  the  loop,  and  above  these  again  is  a  plain,  some- 
what expanding  tube.  In  one  of  the  others,  however,  there  are  only  the 
two  lowest  of  the  beaded  mouldings,  and  the  upper  half -inch  of  the  celt 
first  mentioned  is  absolutely  wanting.  The  three  others  show  very  little 
of  the  plain  part  above  the  upper  moulding.  As  will  subsequently  be 
explained,  the  variation  in  length  appears  to  be  connected  with  the 
method  of  casting,  and  to  have  arisen  from  a  greater  part  of  the  mould 
having  been  "stopped  off"  in 
one  case  than  another.  It  will 
be  noticed  that  the  "  flanches  " 
on  these  celts  are  placed  below 
the  loop  and  not  close  under  the 
cap-moulding.  The  beads  which 
form  them  are  continued  across 
the  sides.  Eunning  part  of  the 
way  down  inside  the  socket  are 
two  longitudinal  ridges  which  are 
in  the  same  line  as  the  runners 
by  which  the  metal  found  its  way 
into  the  mould.  The  vertical 
ridge  above  the  topmost  moulding 
shows  where  there  is  a  channel  in 
the  mould  for  the  metal  to  pass 
by.  If  the  celts  had  been  skil- 
fully cast  so  that  their  top  was 
level  with  the  upper  moulding, 
no  traces  of  this  would  have  been 
visible. 

In  Fig.  114  is  shown  one  of 
the  plain  socketed  celts  from  the 
same  hoard.  The  mould  in  which 
it  was  cast  was  found  at  the  same 
time,  as  well  as  the  half  of  a 
mould  for  one  of  smaller  size. 
The  five  other  plain  celts  from 

the  same  hoard  were  all  rather  less  than  the  one  which  is  figured,  and 
appear  to  have  been  cast  in  three  different  moulds,  as  the  beading 
round  the  top  varies  in  character,  and  in  some  is  double  and  not  single. 
The  two  projections  within  the  socket  are  in  these  but  short,  though 
strongly  marked. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  celt  of  this  kind,  4  inches  long,  found  at 
Newton,  Cambridgeshire,  which  on  its  left  face,  as  seen  with  the  loop 
towards  the  spectator,  has  a  small  projecting  boss  1£  inch  below  the  top. 

Five  socketed  celts  of  this  plain  character  (2£  inches  to  3f  inches)  were 
found  together  at  Lodge  Hill,  Waddesdon,  Bucks,  in  1855,  and  were 
lithographed  on  a  private  plate  by  Mr.  Edward  Stone. 

The  outline  and  general  character  of  the  celt  shown  in  Fig.  115  may  be 


Fig.  114.—  Harty.  £    Fig.  115.— Dorchester,  Oxon. 


112 


SOCKETED   CELTS. 


[CHAP.  v. 


taken  as  representative  of  one  of  the  most  common  forms  of  English 
socketed  celt.  This  particular  specimen  differs,  however,  from  the  ordi- 
nary form  in  having  a  ridge  or  ill-defined  rib  on  each  face  which  adds 
materially  to  the  weight  and  somewhat  to  the  strength  of  the  instru- 
ment. It  was  found  near  Dorchester,  Oxon. 

A  nearly  similar  celt  found  in  Mecklenburg  has  been  figured  by  Lisch.* 

A  larger  celt  of  the  same  general  character,  found  with  a  hoard 
of  bronze  objects  in  Reach  Fen,  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  116.  This  may  also  be  regarded  as  a  characteristic  specimen 

of  the  socketed  celts  usually 
found  in  England,  though  the 
second  moulding  is  often  ab- 
sent, and  there  is  a  consi- 
derable range  in  size  and  in 
the  proportion  of  the  width 
to  the  length.  No  doubt 
much  of  this  range  is  due  to 
some  instruments  having  been 
more  shortened  by  use  and 
wear  than  others.  The  edge 
of  a  bronze  tool  must  have 
been  constantly  liable  to  be- 
come blunted,  jagged,  or  bent, 
and  when  thus  injured  was 
doubtless,  to  some  extent,  re- 
stored to  its  original  shape 
by  being  hammered  out,  and 
then  re-ground  and  sharpened. 
The  repetition  of  this  process 
would,  in  the  course  of  time, 

materially  diminish  the  length  of  the  blade,  until  eventually  it 
would  be  worn  out,  or  the  solid  part  be  broken  away  from  the 
socketed  portion. 

Celts  of  this  general  character,  plain  with  the  exception  of  a  single  or 
double  beading  at  the  top,  occur  of  various  sizes,  and  have  been  found  in 
considerable  numbers.  In  my  own  collection  are  specimens  (3  inches) 
from  Westwick  Row,  near  Grorhambury,  Herts,  found  with  lumps  of 
rough  metal ;  from  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge  (3£  inches),  found  also  with 
metal,  a  spear-head  like  Fig.  381  and  a  hollow  ring;  from  Bottisham, 
Cambridge  (3  inches),  and  other  places. 

In  the  Reach  Fen  hoard  already  mentioned  were  some  other  celts  of 

*  "  Pfahlbauten,  in  M.,"  1865,  p.  78. 


PLAIN    WITH   A    BEADING    ROUND    THE    MOUTH.  113 

this  type.  They  were  associated  with  gouges,  chisels,  knives,  hammers, 
and  other  articles,  and  also  with  two  socketed  celts,  one  like  Fig.  133,  and 
two  like  Fig.  124,  as  well  as  with  two  of  the  type  shown  in  Fig.  117, 
with  a  small  bead  at  some  little  distance  below  the  principal  moulding 
round  the  mouth.  One  of  them  has  a  slightly  projecting  rib  running 
down  each  corner  of  the  blade,  a  peculiarity  I  have  noticed  in  other  speci- 
mens. The  socket  is  round  rather  than  square. 

I  have  other  examples  of  this  type  from  a  hoard  of  about  sixty  celts 
found  on  the  Manor  Farm,  Wymington,  Bedfordshire  (3f  inches) ;  from 
Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge  (4  inches) ;  and  from  the  hoard  found  at  Carlton 
Rode,  Norfolk  (4  inches).  This  last  has  the  slightly  projecting  beads 
down  the  angles. 

Socketed  celts  partaking  of  the  character  of  the  three  types  last  described, 
and  from  2  inches  to  4  inches  in  length,  are  of  common  occurrence  in 
England.  Some  with  both  the  single  and  double  mouldings  were  found 
in  company  with  others  having  vertical  beads  on  the  face  like  Fig.  124, 
and  a  part  of  a  bronze  blade  at  West  Halton,*  Lincolnshire.  I  have  seen 
others  both  with  the  single  and  double  moulding  which  were  found  with 
some  of  the  ribbed  and  octagonal  varieties,  a  socketed  knife,  parts  of  a 
sword  and  of  a  gouge,  and  lumps  of  metal,  at  Martlesham,  Suffolk. 
These  are  in  the  possession  of  Captain  Brooke,  of  Ufford  Hall, 
near  Woodbridge.  Another,  apparently  with  the  double  moulding, 
was  found  with  others  (some  of  a  different  type),  seven  spear-heads,  and 
portions  of  a  sword,  near  Bilton,f  Yorkshire.  These  are  now  in  the 
Bateman  Collection.  Another  with  the  single  moulding  was  found  near 
Windsor.;];  Others  with  the  double  moulding,  to  the  number  of  forty,  were 
found  with  twenty  swords  and  sixteen  spear-heads  of  different  patterns, 
about  the  year  1726,  near  Alnwick  Castle, §  Northumberland.  Some  also 
occurred  in  the  deposit  of  nearly  a  hundred  celts  which  was  found  with  a 
quantity  of  cinders  and  lumps  of  rough  metal  on  Earsley  Common,  ||  about 
12  miles  N.W.  of  York,  in  the  year  1735.  A  socketed  celt  with  the  single 
moulding  was  found  with  spear-heads,  part  of  a  dagger,  and  some  small 
whetstones,  near  Little  Wenlock,^f  Shropshire.  Four  socketed  celts  of  this 
class  with  the  double  moulding  were  found,  with  a  socketed  gouge  and 
about  30  pounds  weight  of  copper  in  lumps,  at  Sittingbourne,**  Kent,  in 
1828.  They  are,  I  believe,  now  in  the  Dover  Museum.  One  (4£  inches), 
obtained  at  Honiton,ff  Devonshire,  has  a  treble  moulding  at  the  top,  that 
in  the  middle  being  larger  than  the  other  two.  The  socket  is  square. 

A  plain  socketed  celt,  2£  inches  long,  was  found  in  digging  gravel 
near  Ctesar's  Camp,^  Coombe  Wood,  Surrey.  It  is  now  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  In  the  collection  of  Messrs.  Mortimer,  at 
Fimber,  is  a  celt  with  the  double  moulding  (3  inches  long),  found  at 
Frodingham,  near  Driffield,  which  has  four  small  ribs,  one  in  the  centre 
of  each  side  running  down  the  socket.  Another,  with  the  double  moulding 
(4  inches),  and  with  a  nearly  round  mouth  to  the  socket,  was  found  at  Tun 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  69. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  349  ;  Bateman,  Catal.  M.  60,  p.  76. 
J  Stukeley,  "  Tt.  Cur.,"  pi.  xcvi.  2nd.  §  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113. 

||  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  114. 

II  Hartshorne's  "  Salopia  Antiqua,"  1841,  p.  96,  No.  9. 
**  Smith's  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  101. 
tt  Engraved  in  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  343. 
I  j  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  i.  p.  67  ;  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  83. 
I 


114 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


Hill,  near  Devizes,  and  is  in  the  Blackmore  Museum,  where  is  also  one 
found  near  Bath  (3f  inches)  with  the  mouldings  more  uniform  in  size. 

A  socketed  celt  without  any  moulding  at  the  top,  which  is  hollowed  and 
slopes  away  from  the  side  on  which  is  the  loop,  is  said  to  have  been  found 
in  a  tumulus  near  the  King  Barrow  on  Stowborough  Heath,*  near 
Wareham,  Dorset. 

Socketed  celts  of  this  character  occur  throughout  the  whole  of  France, 
but  are  most  abundant  in  the  northern  parts.  They  are  of  rare  occur- 
rence in  Germany. 

The  same  form  is  found  among  the  Lake  habitations  of  Switzerland. 
Dr.  Gross  has  specimens  from  Auvernier  and  Mcerigen,f  which  closely 
resemble  English  examples. 

A  celt  of  the  same  general  character  as  Fig.  114,  but  of  peculiar  form, 
narrowing  to  a  central  waist,  is  shown  in  Fig.  118.  The  original  was 

found  at  Canterbury,  and  was 
kindly  presented  to  me  by  Mr. 
John  Brent,  F.S.A. 

Broad  socketed  celts  nearly 
circular  or  but  slightly  oval  at 
the  neck,  and  closely  resembling 
the  common  Irish  type  (Fig.  167) 
in  form  and  character,  are  occa- 
sionally found  in  England.  That 
shown  in  Fig.  119  is  stated  to 
have  been  discovered  at  the 
Castle  Hill,  Usk,  Monmouth- 
shire. 

I  have  seen  another  (3J 
inches)  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
E.  Fitch,  F.S.A.,  which  was 
found  at  Hanworth,  near  Holt, 
Norfolk. 

Among  those  found  at  Guils- 
field,!  Montgomeryshire,  was 
one  of  somewhat  the  same  cha- 
racter, but  having  a  double 

moulding  at  the  top.  Another,  §  with  a  nearly  square  socket,  has  above 
a  double  moulding,  a  cable  moulding  round  the  mouth,  like  that  on 
Fig.  172.  In  the  same  hoard  were  looped  palstaves,  gouges,  spears, 
swords,  scabbards,  &c. 

Another,  that,  to  judge  from  a  bad  engraving,  had  no  moulding  at 
the  top,  which  was  oval,  is  said  to  have  been  found  under  a  supposed 
Druid's  altar  near  Keven  Hirr  Vynidd,||  on  the  borders  of  Brecknockshire. 

Another  variety,  with  a  nearly  square  socket  and  long  narrow 
blade  is  shown  in  Fig.  120,  the  original  of  which  was  found  at 
Alfriston,  Sussex.  The  loop  is  imperfect,  owing  to  defective  cast- 

*  "The  Barrow  Diggers,"  p.  74. 

t  Grosst,  "  Deux  Stations,  &c.,"  pi.  i.  15,  18. 

I  Arch.  Cainb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  214,  No.  4  ;  "  Montg.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 

§  Arch.  Camb.,  itbi  sup.  No.  3.  ||  Arch.,  vol.  iv.  p.  24,  pi.  i.  6. 


Fig.  US.— Canterbury 


OF    A    GAULISH   TYPE.  115 

ing.  The  socket  is  very  deep,  and  extends  to  within  an  inch  of 
the  edge.  Instruments  of  this  type  are  principally,  if  not  solely, 
found  in  our  southern  counties.  The  type  is  indeed  Gaulish 
rather  than  British,  and  is  very  abundant  in  the  north-western 
part  of  France.  It  appears  probable  that  not  only  was  the  type 
originally  introduced  into  this  country  from  France,  but  that  there 
was  a  regular  export  of  such  celts  to  Britain.  For  I  have  in  my 
collection  a  celt  of  this  type,  4|  inches  long,  that  was  found  under 
the  pebble  beach  at  Portland,  and  in  which 
the  core  over  which  it  was  cast  still  fills  the 
socket,  the  clay  having  by  the  heat  of  the 
metal  been  converted  into  a  brick-like  terra- 
cotta. It  could,  therefore,  never  have  been 
in  use,  as  no  haft  could  have  been  inserted. 
It  is  waterworn  and  corroded  by  the  action 
of  the  sea,  the  loop  having  been  almost  eaten 
and  worn  away,  so  that  it  is  impossible  to 
say  whether  the  surface  and  edge  were  left 
as  they  came  from  the  mould.  In  the  large 
hoard,  however,  of  bronze  celts  of  this  type 
which  was  found  at  Moussaye,  near  Ple'ne'e- 
Jugon,  in  the  Cotes  du  Nord,  the  bulk  were 
left  in  this  condition,  and  with  the  burnt 
clay  cores  still  in  the  sockets. 

I  have  another  celt  of  the  same  size  and 
form  as  that  from  the  Portland  beach,  which 
was  found  near  Wareham,  Dorset,  and  ap- 
pears to  have  been  in  use. 

Two  found  with  many  others  in  the  New 
Forest*  (3  and  5  inches  long)  are  engraved  in 

the  Archaologia.     The  larger  has  a  rib  3  inches 

long  running  down  the  face  and  terminating  in  Fig.  120.— Alfriston. 

an  annulet. 

Others  of  the  same  type  have  been  found  at  Hollingbury  HilT,f  and 
near  the  church,  at  Brighton,  \  Sussex. 

Among  the  celts  found  at  Karn  Bre,  Cornwall,  in  1744,  were  some  of 
this  character,  but  expanding  more  at  the  cutting  edge.  Others  were 
more  like  Fig.  124,  though  longer  in  proportion.  With  them  are  said  to 
have  been  found  several  Roman  coins,  some  as  late  as  the  time  of 
Constantius  Chlorus.  Others  (5  inches  long)  seem  to  have  formed  part 

*  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  114,  pi.  viii.  9,  10 ;  (Jough's  "  Camden,"  vol.  i.  p.  ccvi 
t  SUM.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  268,  fig.  7. 
J  Ibid.,  fig.  12. 

i2 


116 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


of  the  hoard  found  at  Mawgan,*  Cornwall,  in  which  there  was  also 
a  fine  rapier.  Another,  from  Bath,f  is  in  the  Duke  of  Northumberland's 
museum  at  Alnwick.  Another  has  been  cited  from  Cornwall.  J 

Celts  of  this  form  are  of  rare  occurrence  in  the  North  of  England, 
but  one,  said  to  have  been  disinterred  with  Roman  remains  at  Chester- 
le-Street,§  Durham,  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
Newcastle-on-Tyne. 

Celts  Tike  Fig.  120  are  of  very  frequent  occurrence  in  Northern  France; 
large  hoards,  consisting  almost  entirely  of  this  type,  have  been  found. 
A  deposit  of  sixty  was  discovered  near  Lamballe  ||  (Cotes  du  Nord),  and 
one  of  more  than  two  hundred  at  Moussaye,  near  Plenee-Jugon,  in  the 

same  department.  Most  of  the 
celts  in  both  these  hoards  had 
never  been  used,  and  in  a  large 
number  the  core  of  burnt  clay  was 
still  in  the  socket.  A  hoard  of 
about  fifty  is  said  to  have  been 
found  near  Bevay,^[  Belgium. 

Plain  socketed  celts  nearly  square 
at  the  mouth  have  occasionally 
been  found  in  Germany.  One  from 
Pomerania**  is  much  like  Fig.  120 
in  outline. 

The  form  of  narrow  celt,  which  I 
regard  as  of  Gaulish  derivation,  is 
not  nearly  so  elegant  as  that  of  a 
more  purely  English  type  of  which 
an  example  is  shown  in  Fig.  121. 
The  original  was  found  in  the  Cam- 
bridge Fens,  and  is  in  my  own  col- 
lection. Within  the  socket  on  the 
centre  of  each  side  is  a  raised  nar- 
row rib  running  down  2  inches 
from  the  mouth,  or  to  within  £  inch 
of  the  bottom  of  the  socket. 

The  type  is  rare  ;  but  a  specimen 
(5  inches)  of  nearly  the  same  form  as 
the  figure  was  found,  with  palstaves, 
sickles,  &c.,  near  Taunton,  Somer- 
set.ff  There  is  also  a  resemblance 
to  the  Barrington  celt,  Fig.  148. 

I  have  already  mentioned  a  celt  with  a  moulded  top,  which,  on  one  of 
its  faces,  is  ornamented  with  a  small  projecting  boss.  In  Fig.  122 
is  shown  an  example  with  two  pellets  beneath  the  upper  moulding.  It 
was  found  with  others  at  High  Boding,  Essex,  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  Another  with  three  such  knobs  on  each  face,  placed  near  the 


121. 

Cambridge  Fens. 


t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  75. 
§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  75. 


*  Arch.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  337. 

S+  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  172. 
"  Materiaux,"  vol.  i.  p.  539. 
If  Lindenschmit,  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  ii.  Taf.  ii.  4. 
**  "  Zeitsch.  fur  Eth.,"  vol.  vii.  Taf.  ix.  2. 

+t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  94.     Pring,  "  Brit,  and  Rom.  on  Site  of  Taunton," 
pi.  i.  1. 


WITH    VERTICAL   RIBS   ON    THE    FACES. 


117 


top  of  the  instrument,  is  shown  in  Fig.  123.  The  original  is  in  the 
British  Museum,  and  was  found  at  Chrishall,*  Essex,  where  also  several 
plain  celts  with  single  or  double  mouldings  at  the  top,  some  spear-heads, 
and  a  portion  of  a  socketed  knife  were  dug  up. 

A  large  brass  coin  of  Hadrian,  much  defaced,  is  said  to  have  been 
found  at  the  same  time.  As  in  other  instances,  the  evidence  on  this 
point  is  unsatisfactory,  and  if  it  could  be  sifted,  would  probably  carry 
the  case  no  farther  than  to  prove  that  the  Eoman  coins  and  the  bronze 
celts  were  found  near  the  same  spot,  and  possibly  by  the  same  man,  on 
the  same  day.  In  illustration  of  this  collection  of  objects  of  different 
dates,  I  may  mention  that  I  lately  purchased  a  fifteenth-century  jeton 
as  having  been  found  with  Merovingian  gold  ornaments. 


Fig.  123.-Crishall. 


Fig.  124.— Beach  Fen. 


Fig.  125.— Harrington. 


Some  of  the  Breton  celts,  in  form  like  Fig.  120,  have  two  or  three 
knobs  on  a  level  with  the  loop. 

Another  and  common  kind  of  ornament  on  the  faces  of  socketed 
celts  consists  of  vertical  lines,  or  ribs,  extending  from  the  moulding 
round  the  mouth  some  distance  down  the  faces  of  the  blade.  They 
vary  in  number,  but  are  rarely  less  than  three.  In  some  instances 
the  ribs  are  so  slight  as  to  be  almost  imperceptible,  a  circumstance 
which  suggests  the  probability  of  celts  in  actual  use  having  served 
as  the  models  or  patterns  from  which  the  moulds  for  casting  others 
were  made,  as  in  each  successive  moulding  and  casting  any  promi- 
nences such  as  these  ribs  would  be  reduced  or  softened  down.  On  any 

*  Neville's  "  Sepulchra  Exposita,"  p.  3. 


118  SOCKETED    CELTS  [CHAP.  V. 

other  supposition  it  is  difficult  to  conceive  how  an  ornamentation 
so  indistinct  as  almost  to  escape  observation  could  have  originated. 
There  are  some  celts  which  on  one  face  are  quite  smooth  arid  plain, 
while  on  the  other  some  traces  of  the  ribs  may  just  be  detected. 
The  same  is  the  case  with  some  of  the  celts  which  have  the  slightest 
possible  traces  of  the  "  flanches,"  such  as  seen  on  Fig.  111.  The 
smearing  of  metal  moulds  with  clay,  to  prevent  the  adhesion  of 
the  castings,  would  tend  to  obliterate  such  ornaments. 

A  celt  with  the  vertical  ribs  from  the  hoard  of  Beach  Fen,  Cambridge, 
is  shown  in  Fig.  124.  There  are  slight  projecting  beads  running  down 
the  angles.  The  three  ribs  die  into  the  face  of  the  blade.  Another  of 
nearly  the  same  type,  but  with  coarse  ribs  somewhat  curved,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  125.  It  has  not  the  beads  at  the  angles.  This  specimen  was  found 
in  company  with  a  celt  .like  Fig.  116,  and  with  a  gouge  like  Fig.  204,  at 
Barrington,  Cambridge/ and  is  in  my  own  collection. 

Celts  of  wider  proportions,  and  having  the  three  ribs  farther  apart, 
have  been  frequently  found  in  the  Northern  English  counties.  I  have 
one  (3J  inches)  from  Middleton,  on  the  Yorkshire  Wolds,  which  was 
given  me  by  Mr.  H.  S.  Harland ;  and  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  has 
several  from  Yorkshire.  The  celt  which  was  found  near  Tadcaster,*  in 
that  county,  and  which  has  been  so  often  cited,  from  the  fact  of  its  having 
a  large  bronze  ring  passing  through  the  loop,  on  which  is  a  jet  bead, 
is  also  of  this  type.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  ring  and  bead, 
which  not  improbably  were  found  at  the  same  time  as  the  celt,  were 
attached  to  it  subsequently  by  the  finder,  in  the  manner  in  which  they 
may  now  be  seen  in  the  British  Museum.  A  celt  with  three  ribs,  from 
the  hoard  found  at  Westow,f  in  the  North  Eiding,  has  been  figured,  as 
has  been  one  from  Cuerdale,J  near  Preston,  Lancashire,  and  one  (4£ 
inches)  from  Eockbourn  Down,§  Wilts,  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
One  (3f-  inches  long)  was  found  near  Hull,  ||  in  Yorkshire;  and  five  others 
at  Winmarley,^]  near  Grarstang,  Lancashire,  together  with  two  spears, 
one  of  them  having  crescent-shaped  openings  in  the  blade  (Fig.  419). 

Another  was  found,  with  other  bronze  objects,  at  Stanhope,**  Durham. 

The  celts  found  with  spear-heads  and  discs  near  Newark,  and  now 
in  Canon  Grreenwell's  collection,  are  of  this  type,  but  of  different  sizes. 
That  found  at  Cann,ffnear  Shaftesbury,  with,  it  is  said,  a  human  skeleton 
and  two  ancient  British  silver  coins,  had  three  ribs  on  its  face. 

Several  others  were  found  in  the  hoard  at  West  Halton,||  Lincoln- 
shire, already  mentioned.  Others  were  discovered  in  company  with  a 
looped  palstave,  some  spear-heads,  ferrules,  fragments  of  swords,  and  a 
tanged  knife,  near  Nottingham, §§  in  1860.  Seven  or  eight  such  celts, 
and  the  half  of  a  bronze  mould  in  which  to  cast  them,  were  found  with  a 
socketed  knife,  spear-heads,  and  numerous  other  objects,  in  the  Heathery 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  362,  pi.  liv. ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  6. 
f  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  107,  pi.  vii.  5 ;  see  also  vol.  iii.  p.  58. 
£  Op.  cit.,  vol.  viii.  p.  332,  pi.  xxxvii.  1 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  304. 
§  "Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  7.  ||  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  185. 

If  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xv.  p.  235.  **  Arch.  Juliana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  ii.  8. 

ft  Evans'  "Anc.  Brit.  Coins,"  p.  102.          |+  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  pp.  69,  70. 
§§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  332. 


WITH    VERTICAL    RIBS    ON    THE    FACES. 


119 


Biirn  Cave,*  near  Stanhope,  Durham,  of  which  further  mention  will 
subsequently  be  made.  Many  have  also  been  found  in  Yorkshire  and 
Northumberland. 

The  type  is  not  confined  to  the  Northern  Counties,  for  specimens 
occurred  in  the  great  find  at  Carlton  Eode,f  near  Attleborough,  Norfolk. 
I  have  seen  another,  4  inches  long,  which  was  found  with  many  other 
socketed  celts  and  other  articles  at  Martlesham,  Suffolk,  in  the  hoard 
already  mentioned  (p.  113).  I  have  one  (3f  inches)  from  Llandysilio, 
Denbighshire.  Another,  with  traces  of  the  three  ribs,  was  found  at  Pul- 
borough,!  Sussex.  This  specimen  is  in  outline  more  like  Fig.  130.  A 
socketed  celt  of  this  kind  (5  inches  long),  with  three  parallel  ribs  on  the  flat 
surface,  was  found  near  Launceston,§  Cornwall. 
Some  long  celts  of  the  same  kind  were  found 
at  Karn  Bre,  in  the  same  county,  as  already 
mentioned. 

In  some  celts  with  the  three  ribs  on  their 
faces,  found  in  Wales,  the  moulding  at  the  top 
is  large  and  heavy,  and  forms  a  sort  of  cornice 
round  the  celt,  the  upper  surface  of  which  is 
flat.  That  engraved  as  Fig.  126  was  found  at 
Mynydd-y-Glas,  near  Hensol,  Glamorganshire, 
and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  In  the 
same  collection  is  another  of  much  the  same 
character,  but  of  ruder  fabric,  4|-  inches  long, 
with  a  square  socket,  found  in  1849  with  others 
similar,  in  making  the  South  Wales  Eailway, 
in  Great  Wood,||  St.  Pagan's,  Glamorganshire. 
The  loop  is  badly  cast,  being  filled  up  with 
metal. 

Canon  Greenwell  has  a  celt  of  this  type  (4 
inches),  found  at  Llandysilio,  Denbighshire, 
with  two  others  having  three  somewhat  con- 
verging ribs  (3f  inches  and  3|  inches),  a  socketed 
knife,  and  part  of  a  spear-head. 

Two  others  (5J-  inches  and  4f  inches)  were 
found  with  part  of  a  looped  palstave  ^f  and  a 
waste  piece  from  a  casting,  and  lumps  of  metal, 
on  Kenidjack  Cliff,  Cornwall.  Another  (4 
inches)  from  Cornwall  is  in  the  British  Mu- 
seum. One  from  Sedgemoor,  Somersetshire,  is 
in  the  Taunton  Museum. 

The  three-ribbed  type  occurs  occasionally  in  France.  Examples  are  in 
the  Museums  of  Amiens,  Toulouse,  Clermont  Ferrand,  Poitiers,  and  other 
towns.  Three  vertical  ribs  are  of  common  occurrence  on  celts  from  Hun- 
gary and  Styria. 

In  some  rare  examples  the  three  ribs  converge  as  they  go  down  the 
blade.  One  such  is  shown  in  Fig.  127.  The  original  is  in  the  possession 
of  Sir  A.  A.  Hood,  Bart.,  and  was  found  with  twenty-seven  other  socketed 


Fig.  126.— Mynydd-y-Glas. 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132. 
%  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ix.  p.  118,  fig.  7. 
||  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  6. 


t  Arch.  Assoc.  Jottrn.,  vol.  i.  p.  59. 
§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  31. 
IT  Journ.  Rorj.  Inst.  Corn.,  No.  206. 


120 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


celts,  some  of  oval  and  some  of  square  section,  two  palstaves,  two  gouges, 
two  daggers,  twelve  spear-heads,  and  numerous  fragments  of  celts  and 
leaf -shaped  swords,  as  well  as  rough  metal  and  the  refuse  jets  from  cast- 
ings. The  whole  lay  together  about  two  feet  below  the  surface  at  Wick 
Park,*  Stogursey,  Somerset. 

In  other  rare  instances  there  is  a  transverse  bead  running  across  the 
blade  below  the  three  vertical  ribs.  The  celt  shown  in  Fig.  128  was  found 
near  Guildford,  Surrey,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  E.  Fitch,  F.S.A. 

On  other  celts  the  vertical  ribs  are  more  or  less  than  three  in  number. 


I 


Fig.  127.— Stogursey. 


Kg.  12 


Fig.  129.— Frettenham. 


A  specimen  with  four  ribs,  also  in  Mr.  Fitch's  collection,  is  engraved  as 
Fig.  129.  It  was  found  at  Frettenham,  Norfolk. 

Others  with  four  ribs  occurred  in  the  find  at  West  Halton,f  Lincoln- 
shire, already  mentioned.  One  was  also  found  at  the  Castle  Hill,J 
Worcester,  and  another  at  Broust  in  Andreas,  §  Isle  of  Man.  Examples 
with  three  and  four  ribs  from  Kirk-patrick  and  Kirk-bride,  Isle  of  Man, 
are  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  J.  E.  Wallace  of  Distington,  Whitehaven. 

One  (4£  inches)  with  five  ribs  was  found  in  the  hoard  at  Martlesham, 
Suffolk,  also  already  mentioned. 

One  (3£  inches)  with  six  small  vertical  ribs  on  the  faces,  found  at 
Downton,  near  Salisbury,  is  in  the  Blackmore  Museum.  In  a  celt  with 

*  Proe.  Soc.^Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  427,  pi.  i.  3.  f  -Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  69. 

.,"  pi.  iv.  1. 


t  AUies,  "  Wore.,"  p.  18,  pi.  i.  1. 


"  1st  Rep.  Arch.  Comm.  I.  of  M.," 


WITH    RIBS    ENDING    IN    PELLETS. 


121 


square  socket  from  the  Carlton  Rode  find  there  are  traces  of  six  ribs  on 
one  of  the  faces  only.  This  specimen,  in  my  own  collection,  is  in  good 
condition,  and  the  probability  is  in  favour  of  this  almost  complete  oblite- 
ration of  the  pattern  being  due  to  a  succession  of  moulds  having  been 
formed,  each  rather  more  indistinct  than  the  one  before  it,  in  which  the 
model  that  served  for  the  mould  was  cast. 

Celts  closely  resembling  Fig.  129  are  in  the  museums  at  Nantes  and 
Narbonne.* 

As  an  instance  of  a  celt  having  only  two  of  these  vertical  ribs  upon  it, 
I  may  mention  a  large  one  in  my  own  collection  (4£-  inches)  found  in  the 


Fig.  130.— Ely. 


Fig.  131.— Caston. 


Isle  of  Portland.  The  mouth  of  the  socket  is  oval,  but  the  external  faces 
are  flat,  the  sides  being  rounded.  The  ribs  run  about  2£  inches  down  the 
faces,  but  the  metal  is  too  much  oxidised  to  see  whether  they  end  in 
pellets  or  no. 

It  is  not  unfrequently  the  case  that  the  ribs  thus  terminate  in  roundels 
or  pellets.  That  from  the  Fens,  near  Ely,  which  has  been  kindly  lent  me 
by  Mr.  Marshall  Fisher,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  130,  is  of  this  kind,  though 
the  pellets  are  so  indistinct  as  to  have  escaped  the  eye  of  the  engraver. 
This  celt  is  remarkable  for  the  unusually  broad  and  heavy  moulding 
at  the  top.  The  notches  in  the  edge,  which  the  engraver  has  reproduced, 
are  of  modern  origin. 

The  celt  from  Caston,  Norfolk,  shown  in  Fig.  131,  has  also  the  three 
*  "Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  11. 


122 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


ribs  ending  in  pellets,  but  there  are  short  diagonal  lines  branching  in 

each  direction  from  the  central  rib  near  the  top. 
I  have  another  of  the  same  kind,  but  longer,  and  without  the  diagonal 

lines,  from  Thetford,  Suffolk. 

A  celt  of  this  type  is  in  the  Stockholm  Museum. 

In  Figs.  132  and  133  are  shown  two  celts  of  this  class,  one  with  five  short 

ribs  ending  in  pellets,  from  the  Carlton  Rode  find,  and  the  other  with  five 

longer  ribs   ending   in  larger  roundels,   from  Fornham,   near  Bury  St. 

Edmunds.  The  latter  was 
bequeathed  to  me  by  my 
valued  friend,  the  late  Mr. 
J.  W.  Flower,  F.G.S. 

It  will  be  observed  that 
in  the  Fornham  celt  the 
first  and  last  ribs  form 
headings  at  the  angles  of 
the  square  shaft.  In  the 
other  none  of  the  beads 
come  to  the  edge  of  the 
face.  I  have  a  celt  like 
Fig.  133,  but  shorter  (4 
inches),  from  the  hoard 
found  in  Reach  Fen,  al- 
ready mentioned.  Another 
(4-J-  inches),  in  all  respects 
like  Fig.  133,  except  that 
the  outer  ribs  are  not  at  the 
angles,  was  found  at 
B  rough,*  near  Castleton, 
Derbyshire,  and  is  in  the 
Bateman  Collection,  where 
is  also  another  (4J  inches) 

/  |B         from  the  Peak  Forest,  Der- 

/  Hi        byshire.  Canon  Greenwell, 

/  Hn        F.R.S.,  has  one  (4£  inches) 

from  Broughton,  near  Mai- 
ton,  on  one  face  of  which 
there  are  only  four  ribs, 
and  in  the  place  where 

the  central  rib   would  terminate,    a  ring  ornament.     The  other  face  of 

the   celt  has   only  four  ribs   at  regular    intervals,    ending  in   pellets. 

Another,  similar  (5  inches),  was  found  in  the  Thames,  near  Erith.f     I 

have  seen  another  rather  more  hexagonal  in  section,  which  was  found 

in  the  Cambridge  Fens. 

Celts  with  vertical  ribs  ending  in  pellets  are  occasionally  found  in 

France.     One  from  Lutz  (Eure  et  Loir)  is  in  the  museum  at  Chateaudun ; 

others   are  in  that  of   Toulouse.      Another  with  four  ribs,   found   at 

Cascastel,  is  in  the  museum  at  Narbonne.     Canon  Greenwell  has  one 

from  1'Orient,  Brittany. 

I  have  a  small  one  like  Fig.  120  in  form,  but  barely  3  inches  long, 

*  Bateman's  "  Catalogue,"  p.  74  ;  Marriott's  "Ant.  of  Lyme  "  (1810),  p.  303 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  157. 


-  Carlton  Rode. 


Fig.  133.—  Fornham. 


WITH    RIBS    AND    PELLETS    ON    THE    FACES. 


123 


found  near  Saumur  (Maine  et  Loire).  It  has  five  ribs,  arranged  as  on 
Fig.  133. 

An  example  with  a  far  larger  array  of  vertical  ribs  than  usual  is  shown 
in  Fig.  134.  The  ribs  are  arranged  in  groups  of  three,  and  each  termi- 
nates in  a  small  pellet.  The  outer  lines  are  so  close  to  the  angles  of  the 
celt  as  almost  to  merge  in  them.  This  instrument  was  found  at  Fen 
Ditton,  Cambridge,  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S. 

On  some  celts  there  is,  besides  the  row  of  roundels  or  pellets  at  the  end 
of  the  ribs,  a  second  row  a  little  higher  up,  as  is  shown  in  Fig.  135, 
which  represents  a  specimen  in  the  British  Museum,  from  Bottisham. 


Fig.  134.— Fen  Ditton. 


Fig.  135.— Bottisham. 


Fig.  136.-Winwick. 


Lode,  Cambridge.  The  sides  of  this  celt  are  not  flat,  but  somewhat 
ridged,  so  that  in  its  upper  part  it  presents  an  irregular  hexagon  in 
section.  There  are  ribs  running  down  the  angles,  with  indications  of 
terminal  pellets. 

In  the  Warrington  Museum  is  a  curious  variety  of  the  celt  with  the 
three  vertical  ribs  ending  in  pellets,  which  by  the  kindness  of  the  trustees 
of  the  museum  I  have  engraved  as  Fig.  136.  It  will  be  seen  that  in 
addition  to  the  vertical  ribs  there  is  a  double  series  of  chevrons  over  the 
upper  part  of  the  blade.  The  metal  is  somewhat  oxidised,  and  the  pattern 
is  made  rather  more  distinct  in  the  engraving  than  it  is  in  the  original. 


124 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


This  celt  has  already  been  figured  on  a  smaller  scale,  and  was  found  at 
Winwick,*  near  Warrington,  Lancashire. 

An  ornamentation  of  nearly  the  same  character,  but  without  pellets  at 
the  end  of  the  ribs,  occurs  on  a  socketed  celt  from  Kiew,f  Eussia. 

The  vertical  ribs  or  lines  occasionally  end  in  ring  ornaments  or 
circles  with  a  central  pellet,  like  the  astronomical  symbol  for  the 
sun  0.  Next  to  the  cross  this  ornament  is,  perhaps,  the  simplest 
and  most  easily  made,  for  a  notched  flint  could  be  used  as  a  pair 

of  compasses  to  produce  a 
circle  with  a  well-marked 
centre  on  almost  any  ma- 
terial, however  hard.  We 
find  these  ring  ornaments 
in  relief  on  many  of  the 
coins  of  the  Ancient  Bri- 
tons, and  in  intaglio  on 
numerous  articles  formed 
of  bone  and  metal,  which 
belong  to  the  Roman  and 
Saxon  periods.  On  Ita- 
lian palstaves  they  are 
the  commonest  orna- 
ments. But  though  so 
frequent  on  metallic  anti- 
quities of  the  latter  part 
of  the  Bronze  Age,  it  is 
remarkable  that  the  orna- 
ment  is  of  very  rare  oc- 
curreneo  on  any  of  the 
pottery  which  is  known  to 

Fig.  137.— Kingston.    \          Fig.  138.-Cayton  Carr.    \        belong  to  that  period. 

A  good  example  from  Kingston,  Surrey,  of  a  celt  with  ring  ornaments 
at  the  end  of  the  ribs  is  in  the  British  Museum,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  137. 
Canon  Greenwell  possesses  a  nearly  similar  celt  (5  inches)  from  Seamer 
Carr,  Yorkshire,  the  angles  of  which  are  ribbed  or  beaded.  A  socketed 
celt  with  the  same  ornamentation,  but  with  pellets  having  a  central  boss 
instead  of  the  ring  ornaments,  is  in  the  museum  at  Nantes4  It  was 
found  in  Brittany. 

Some  of  the  Brittany  celts  like  Fig.  120  have  one  ring-ornament  on  each 
face,  composed  of  two  concentric  circles  and  a  central  pellet. 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Jbwrw.,  vol.  xv.  pi.  xxiv.  7,  p.  236;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  158. 

f  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Bronze,"  2me  partie,  p.  284,  fig.  81 ;  Mem.  des  Ant.  du  Nord, 
1872 -7,  p.  115. 

I  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Bronze,"  2me  partie,  p.  292,  fig.  138. 


WITH    RIBS    AND    RING    ORNAMENTS. 


125 


On  a  celt  found  at  Cayton  Carr,  Yorkshire,  and  in  the  collection  of 
Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  there  is  a  double  row  of  ring  ornaments  at  the 
end  of  the  three  ribs.  Below  the  principal  moulding  at  the  top  of  the  celt 
is  a  band  of  four  raised  beads  by  way  of  additional  ornament.  It  is 
shown  in  Fig.  138.  A  nearly  similar  specimen  is  in  the  Museum  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Newcastle-on-Tyne. 

In  a  very  remarkable  specimen  from  Lakenheath,*  Suffolk,  preserved 
in  the  British  Museum  and  engraved  as  Fig.  139,  there  are  three  lines 
formed  of  rather  oval  pellets,  terminating  in  ring  ornaments,  and  alter- 
nating with  them  two  plain  beaded  ribs  ending  in  small  pellets.  There 
are  traces  of  a  cable  moulding  round  the  neck  above. 


O 


Fig.  139.— Lakenheath. 


Fig  140. — Thames. 


In  another  variety,  also  in  the  British  Museum,  and  shown  in  Fig.  140, 
the  three  ribs  ending  in  ring  ornaments  spring  from  a  transverse  bead, 
between  which  and  the  moulding  round  the  mouth  are  two  other  vertical 
beads,  about  midway  of  the  spaces  between  the  lower  ribs.  It  is  probable 
that  this  celt  was  found  in  the  Thames. 

Another  of  remarkably  analogous  character  was  certainly  found  in  the 
Thames  near  Kingston,!  and  is  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  106. 
t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  101 ;  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p. 
p.  491;  and  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  i.  p.  21. 


See  also  Arch.,  vol.  xxx. 


126 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[  CHAP.  V. 


Antiquaries.  It  is  shown  in  Fig.  141.  On  it  are  only  two  descending 
ribs,  ending  in  ring  ornaments,  the  pellets  in  the  centre  of  which  are 
almost  invisible ;  but  above  the  transverse  bead  are  three  ascending  ribs, 
which  alternate  with  those  that  descend.  All  these  ribs  are  double 
instead  of  single. 

In  some  rare  instances  there  are  ring  ornaments  both  at  the  top  and  at 
the  bottom  of  the  vertical  lines,  as  is  seen  on  one  of  the  faces  of  the 
curious  celt  shown  in  Fig.  142,  where  the  usual  ribs  are  replaced  by  rows 
of  two  or  three  slightly  raised  Lines.  On  the  other  face  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  ornamentation  is  of  a  different  character,  with  one  ring  orna- 


Fig.  142,-Kingston. 


ment  at  top  and  three  below,  the  two  outer  of  which  are  connected  with 
ribs  diverging  from  two  curved  lines  above.  The  original  was  found, 
with  three  others  less  ornamented,  at  Kingston,*  Surrey,  and  is  in  the 
British  Museum. 

A  nearly  similar  celt  from  Scotland  is  described  at  page  137. 

In  another  very  rare  specimen  the  vertical  lines  are  replaced  by  two 
double  chevrons  of  pellets,  the  upper  one  reversed.  There  is  still  a  ring 
ornament  at  the  base,  and  lines  of  pellets  running  down  the  margins  of 
the  blade.  This  specimen,  shown  in  Fig.  143,  was  found  in  the  Thames,! 
and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  T.  Layton,  F.S.A. 

-*  Engraved  also  in  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  5.       f  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  v.  p.  428. 


VARIOUSLY    OBXAMKNTED. 


127 


In  another  equally  rare  form  there  is  a  treble  ring  ornament  at  the 
bottom  of  a  single  central  beaded  rib,  and  at  the  top  two  "  flanches," 
represented  by  double  lines,  as  shown  in  Fig.  144.  The  neck  of  this  celt 
is  in  section  a  flattened  hexagon.  It  was  found  at  Givendale,  near 
Pocklington,  Yorkshire,  E.  E.,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

In  the  celt  shown  in  Fig.  145  the  central  rib  terminates  in  a  pellet, 
and  there  are  three  curved  ribs  on  either  side.  In.  this  case  the  section  of 
the  neck  of  the  blade  is  nearly  circular.  The  specimen  is  in  the  British 
Museum,  and  was  probably  found  near  Cambridge,  as  it  formed  part  of 
the  late  Mr.  Lichfield's  collection.  A  celt  ornamented  in  the  same  manner, 
but  without  the  central  rib,  was  found  near  Mildenhall,  Suffolk,  and  is 
in  the  collection  of  Mr.  H.  Prigg. 

Another  (4  inches),  also  in  the  British  Museum,  has  two  ribs  on  each 


Fig.  143.— Thames. 


margin,  parallel  to  the  sides,  as  seen  in  Fig.  146.  It  was  found  near 
Blandford,  Dorsetshire,  in  company  with  unfinished  gouges,  and  is 
remarkable  on  account  of  its  having  been  cast  so  thin  that  it  seerns 
incapable  of  standing  any  hard  work. 

It  seems  probable  that  the  instruments  from  Blandford,  now  in  the 
British  Museum,  formed  part  of  a  large  hoard,  for  in  the  collection  of  the 
late  Mr.  Medhurst,  of  Weymouth.  were  a  dozen  or  more  of  much  the  same 
outline  and  character.  The  section  at  the  neck  is  a  flattened  hexagon. 
Some  have  a  straight  rib  on  each  of  the  sloping  sides,  as  well  as  two 
curved  lines  on  the  flat  face.  Others  have  three  lines,  one  straight  and 
two  curved,  on  the  flat  face,  each  ending  in  a  pellet ;  and  others  again 
have  merely  a  central  line  on  the  flat  face. 

A  celt  of  nearly  the  same  outline  as  Fig.  146  (4J  inches),  found  at 
Gembling,  Yorkshire,  E.  E.,  has  slight  flutings  down  the  angles  for 


128 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


about  two-thirds  of  its  length.  It  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Green- 
well,  F.K.S. 

Another  of  these  instruments,  ornamented  m  the  same  manner,  but 
having  a  curved  edge,  is  shown  in  Fig.  147,  from  an  original  in  the 
British  Museum.  It  formed  part  of  the  Cooke  Collection  from  Parsons- 
town  King's  County,  but  I  doubt  its  being  really  Irish. 

A  rare  form  of  socketed  celt  is  shown  in  Fig.  148.  ^  The  original  was 
found  in  the  Fens,  near  Barrington,  Cambridge,  and  is  in  my  own  col- 
lection. It  has  at  the  top  of  the  blade,  below  the  moulding,  a  shield- 
shaped  ornament,  of  much  the  same  character  as  that  on  the  palstaves, 
like  Fig.  60,  but  in  this  case  formed  by  indented  lines  cast  in  the 
metal. 


Another,  of  unusually  narrow  form,  found  at  Thames  Ditton,*  is  in 
the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 

A  broader  celt,  ornamented  with  a  reversed  chevron,  formed  of  three 
raised  ribs,  and  with  short  single  ribs  on  each  side,  is  shown  in  Fig.  149. 
It  was  found  at  Hounslow,  with  a  flat  celt,  a  palstave,  and  a  socketed 
celt  like  Fig.  112,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  more  common  form  has  a  circular  socket  and  moulded  top,  below 
which  the  neck  of  the  blade  is  an  almost  regular  octagon.  That  shown 
in  Fig.  150  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was  found  at  Wallingford,f 
Berks,  in  company  with  a  socketed  gouge,  a  tanged  chisel  (Fig.  193),  a 
socketed  knife,  and  a  two-edged  cutting  tool  or  razor  (Fig.  269). 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  398. 

*  This  is  possibly  the  specimen  mentioned  in  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  303. 


OF    OCTAGONAL    SECTION. 


129 


One  nearly  similar,  supposed  to  have  been  found  in  Yorkshire, 
together  with  the  mould  in  which  it  was  cast,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceo- 
logia.*  The  mould  was  regarded  as  a  case  in  which  the  instrument  was 
kept.  Another  of  the  same  kind  seems  to  have  been  found,  with  other 
celts  and  fragments  of  swords  and  spears,  at  Bilton,f  Yorkshire.  I  have 
seen  another,  4  inches  long,  from  the  hoard  found  at  Martlesham,  Suffolk, 
already  mentioned.  A  broken  specimen,  found  with  a  socketed  gouge 
and  an  article  like  Fig.  493,  at  Roseberry  Topping, J  in  Cleveland, 
Yorkshire,  appears  to  be  of  this  kind.  Another  (5  inches  long),  found 
at  Minster,  Kent,  is  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool.  I  have  also 
one  from  the  Cambridge  Fens. 

In  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  are  three  socketed  celts 
with  octagonal  necks,  which  were  found  with 
others,  both  plain  and  having  three  ribs  on  the 
face,  together  with  a  looped  palstave,  at  Haxey, 
Lincolnshire.  Two  of  these  are  of  the  usual  type, 
but  the  third  (3£  inches)  is  shorter  and  broader, 
resembling  in  outline  the  common  Irish  form, 
Fig.  167.  A  celt  apparently  of  the  type  of  Fig.  150, 
but  with  a  double  bead  round  the  top,  was  found 
in  the  Severn,  at  Holt,§  Worcestershire.  In  the 
Faussett  Collection,  now  at  Liverpool,  is  a  celt  of 
this  kind,  with  the  angles  engrailed  or  "milled." 
This  was  probably  found  in  Kent. 

A  celt  of  this  type,  found  at  Orgelet,  Jura,  is 
figured  by  Chantre,  ||  as  well  as  one  from  the  Lac 
du  Bourget.^f  They  have  also  been  found  in  the 
Department  of  La  Manche.**'  I  have  one  from  the 
hoard  found  at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens,  the  neck  of 
which  is  decagonal. 

Nearly  the  same  form  has  been  found  in  Swe- 
den.ff 

Another  example,  more  trumpet-mouthed,  is 
shown  in  Fig.  151,  from  the  collection  of  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.E.S.  It  was  found  in  1868  in  drain- 
ing at  Newham,  Northumberland.  I  have  another 
of  nearly  the  same  form  (4f  inches),  from  Coveney, 
in  the  Isle  of  Ely.  Another,  found  at  Stanhope,^ 
Durham,  without  loop,  and  with  two  holes  near 
the  top,  was  regarded  as  an  instrument  for  sharpen- 
ing spear-heads. 

Occasionally  the  neck  of  the  blade  is  hexagonal  instead  of  octagonal. 
In  one  found  at  Ty-Mawr,§§  on  Holyhead  Mountain,  Anglesea,  the  hexa- 
gonal character  is  continued  to  the  mouth.  The  socket  is  of  an  irregularly 
square  form.  It  was  found  with  a  socketed  knife,  a  tanged  chisel,  spear- 

*  Vol.  v.  109,  pi.  vii.  5. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  fourn.,  vol.  v.  p.  349  ;  Bateman's  Catal.,  p.  76,  No.  GO. 

t  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  55  ;  Arch.  jE/iana,  vol.  ii.  p.  213. 

§  Allies,  p.  149,  pi.  iv.  6.          ||  "  Album,"  pi.  x.  4. 

IT  Op.  cit.,  pi.  Iv.  8.  **  Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  Norm.,  1827—8,  pi.  xvi.  4. 

ft  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.  p.  293. 

tt  Arch.  ^Eliana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  ii.  7. 

§§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  255,  pi.  fig.  3. 


Fig.  151.— Xewham.     -J- 


130 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


heads,  &c.,  which  are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  This  form  occurs  more 
frequently  in  Ireland.  A  nearly  similar  celt  has  been  found  in  the  Lake 
of  Geneva.* 

Another  celt,  with  the  neck  irregularly  octagonal,  but  with  a  series  of 
mouldings  round  the  mouth  of  the  socket,  is  shown  in  Fig.  152.  The 
original  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  and  formed  part  of  the 
hoard  found  at  Westow,  in  the  East  Biding  of  Yorkshire,  already  men- 
tioned at  p.  118. 

In  Fig.  153  is  shown,  not  on  my  usual  scale  of  one-half,  but  of  nearly 
the  actual  size,  a  very  remarkable  celt,  which  was  found  in  the  bed  of  the 


Fig.  153.— Wandsworth 


Fig.  154.— Whittlesea 


Thames  f  near  Wandsworth,  and  was  presented  to  the  Archaeological 
Institute.  The  original  is,  unfortunately,  no  longer  forthcoming.  It  was 
4f  inches  long,  and,  besides  its  general  singularity  of  form,  presented  the 
peculiar  feature  of  having  the  hole  of  the  loop  in  the  same  direction  as  the 
socket  of  the  celt,  instead  of  its  being  as  usual  at  right  angles  to  the  blade. 
Socketed  celts  with  a  loop  on  the  face  instead  of  on  the  side  are  of  ex- 
ceedingly rare  occurrence  either  in  Britain  or  elsewhere.  That  shown  in 

*  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  Ire  ptie.  p.  59;  Desor,  "  Les  Palafittes,"  fig.  39. 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  378,  whence  this  cut  is  borrowed. 


WITH    THE    LOOP   ON    ONE    FACE.  131 

Fig.  154  is  in  the  Museum  at  Wisbech,  and  was  found  in  company  with, 
three  socketed  celts,  two  gouges,  a  hammer,  and  a  leaf-shaped  spear- 
head at  Whittlesea.  The  socket  shows  within  it  four  vertical  ribs  at  equal 
distances,  with  diagonal  branches  from  them.  These  latter  may  have 
been  intended  to  facilitate  the  escape  of  air  from  the  mould.  I  am 
indebted  to  the  managers  of  the  Museum  for  the  loan  of  the  specimen  for 
engraving. 

The  type  has  occasionally  been  found  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Savoy. 
In  the  Museum  of  Chambery  *  there  are  three  examples  from  the  Lac  du 
Bourget,  and  I  possess  another  specimen  from  the  same  locality.  Another 
(about  4  inches),  from  la  Balme,f  Isere,  is  in  the  Museum  at  Lyons ; 
it  is  more  spud-shaped  than  the  English  example.  Another,  of  different 
form,  was  in  the  Larnaud  hoard,  J  Jura.  One  has  also  been  found  at 
Auvernier,§  in  the  Lake  of  Neuchatel.  Another  (4  inches),  in  the  late 
M.  Troyon's  collection,  was  found  at  Echallens,  Canton  Vaud. 

One  with  curved  plates  on  the  sides,  like  Fig.  155,  but  having  the  loop 
on  one  face,  was  found  near  Avignon,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
It  has  a  round  neck  with  a  square  socket.  A  smaller  one,  of  nearly  the 
same  form,  was  found  in  a  hoard  at  Pontpoint,  near  the  River  Oise. 
Another,  with  curved  indentations  on  the  sides,  from  the  department  of 
Jura,  ||  is  in  the  museum  at  Toulouse.  Socketed  celts  with  a  loop  on  the 
face  have  been  found  in  Siberia.^ 

In  some  socketed  celts  the  reminiscence  of  the  "flanches"  or  wings  upon 
the  palstaves,  of  which  I  have  spoken  in  an  earlier  part  of  this  chapter, 
has  survived  in  a  peculiar  manner,  there  being  somewhat  hollowed  oval 
projections  upon  each  side  of  the  blade,  that  give  the  appearance  of  the 
"flanches "  on  the  face,  but  at  the  same  time  produce  indentations  in  the 
external  outline  of  the  instrument. 

This  will  be  seen  in  Fig.  155,  which  was  found  with  the  palstave 
(Fig.  83),  the  socketed  celt  (Fig.  157),  and  other  objects  at  Nettleham,** 
near  Lincoln,  as  already  described  (page  93).  Another  of  the  same  class  is 
said  to  have  been  found  in  a  tumulus  on  Frettenham  Common,!!  Norfolk. 
Another,  shown  in  Fig.  156,  was  in  the  Crofton  Croker  Collection.  All 
these  are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The  second  celt  from  Nettleham 
(Fig.  157)  shows  only  the  indented  outline  without  any  representation 
of  the  oval  plates.  The  nearest  approach  in  form  to  these  celts  which  I 
have  met  with  is  to  be  seen  in  some  from  the  South  of  France.  These 
are,  however,  generally  without  loops.  I  have  two  from  the  departments  of 
Haute  Loire  and  Isere.  One  from  Ribiers,  in  the  department  of  the  Hautes 
Alpes,  is  in  the  museum  at  St.  Omer.  Another  is  in  the  museum  at  Metz. 

A  socketed  celt,  found  at  Aninger,  and  now  in  the  Antiken  Cabinet  at 
Vienna,  has  large  oval  plates  on  each  of  its  sides,  which  nearly  meet 
upon  the  faces. 

In  the  collection  of  the  late  Mr.  Brackstone  was  a  remarkable  celt,  exhi- 
biting a  modification  of  this  form.  It  is  said  to  have  been  found  with  a 
large  socketed  celt  with  three  mouldings  round  the  mouth,  and  a  looped 

*  Perrin,  "  Et.  preh.  de  la  Sav.,"  pi.  x.  4,  5  ;  "  Exp.  Arch,  de  la  Sav.,"  1878,  pi.  vi. 
210  ;  Chantre,  "  Album,"  pi.  Iv.  3. 

t  Chantre,  "Album,"  pi.  x.  2.  J  Op.  cit.,  pi.  xl.  bis.  3. 

§  Gross,  "  Deux  Stations,"  pi.  i.  17. 

||   "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiv.  pi.  ix.  10.  IT  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  i.  p.  463. 

**  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160,  whence  this  and  fig.  157  are  borrowed, 
tf  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  153  ;  Arch.  Inst.,  Norwich  vol.  p.  xxvi. 
K    2 


132  SOCKETED  CELTS  [CHAP.  V. 

palstave  with  three  ribs  below  the  stop- ridge,  near  Ulleskelf,  Yorkshire. 


Fig.  155.— Nettleham. 


Fig.  156,-Croker  Collection. 


Fig.  157.—  Nettleham. 


Mr.  Brackstone  printed  a  lithographic  plate  of  the  three,  from  which  and 
from  an  engraving  in  the  Archaological 
Journal*  Fig.  158  is  taken.  It  will  be 
observed  that  this  celt  is  elaborately  or- 
namented, even  on  the  ring,  either  by 
engraving  or  punching.  The  original 
is  now  in  the  Blackmore  Museum  at 
Salisbury. 

A  celt  of  closely  allied  character,  with 
the  lower  part  of  the  blade  and  the 
C-shaped  flanches  similar  to  that  from 
Ulleskelf,  with  the  exception  of  the 
chevron  ornament,  is  said  to  have  been 
also  found  in  Yorkshire.  A  woodcut, 
from  a  drawing  by  M.  Du  Noyer,  will 
be  found  in  the  Archaeological  Journal.] 
The  upper  part  is  rectangular  and 
plain,  without  any  moulding  round 
the  top,  and  there  is  no  loop.  The 
original  is  6  inches  long.  In  general 
appearance  and  character  this  celt  ap- 
proaches those  of  Etruscan  and  Italian 
origin  ;  but  I  see  no  reason  why  it  may 

*  Vol.  viii.  p.  91.     The  length  is  erroneously  stated  to  be  about  4  inches  in  a  sub- 
sequent volume  (vol.  xviii.  p.  164). 
t  Vol.  viii.  91. 


Fig.  158.— LTleskelf. 


WITHOUT   LOOPS.  133 

not  have  been  found,  as  stated,  in  Britain,  though,  so  far  as  I  know,  it  is 
unique  of  its  kind. 

The  next  class  of  socketed  celts  which  has  to  be  noticed  consists 
of  those  in  which  the  loop  is  absent.  No  doubt,  in  some  cases, 
this  absence  arises  either  from  defective  casting,  or  from  the  loop 
having  been  accidentally  broken  off,  and  all  traces  of  it  removed  ; 
but  in  many  instances  it  is  evident  that  the  tools  were  cast  pur- 
posely without  a  loop.  It  seems  probable  that  many  of  them 
were  intended  for  use  as  chisels,  and  not  like  the  looped  kinds  as 
axes  or  hatchets.  The  similarity  between  the  looped  and  the 
loopless  varieties  is  so  great  that  I  have  thought  it  best  to  de- 
scribe some  of  the  instruments  which  may  be  regarded  as  un- 
doubtedly chisels  in  this  place  rather  than  in  the  chapter  devoted 
to  chisels,  in  which,  however, 
such  of  the  socketed  kinds  as  are 
narrow  at  the  edge,  and  do  not 
expand  like  the  common  forms 
of  celt,  will  be  found  described. 

The  small  tool  shown  in  Fig.  159 
may  safely  be  regarded  as  a  chisel. 
It  does  not  show  the  slightest  trace 
of  ever  having  been  intended  to  have 
a  loop,  and  is  indeed  too  light  for  a 
hatchet.  It  was  found  with  a  tanged 
chisel,  a  hammer,  numerous  socketed 
celts,  and  other  articles,  in  the  hoard 
from  Eeach  Fen,  Cambridge,  already 
mentioned  at  p.  112.  I  have  seen 
another,  2£  inches  long,  with  a 
somewhat  oval  socket  and  no  loop,  which  was  found  in  Mildenhall  Fen, 
and  was  in  the  collection  of  the  Eev.  S.  Banks,  of  Cottenham. 

A  longer  celt  of  the  same  character  is  engraved  by  Dr.  Plot.*  It  was 
sent  to  him  by  Charles  Cotton,  Esq.,  and  according  to  Plot  "  seems  to 
have  been  the  head  of  a  Eoman  rest  used  to  support  the  lituus,  the 
trombe-torte,  crooked  trumpet,  or  home  pipe  used  in  the  Eoman  armies." 
Another  of  nearly  the  same  form  was  found  on  Meon  Hill,f  near  Camden, 
Gloucestershire. 

A  celt  or  chisel  of  this  character  found  at  Diiren,  in  North  Brabant,,  is 
in  the  museum  at  Leyden. 

Another  was  found  at  Zaborowo,  J  in  Posen,  in  a  sepulchral  urn. 

A  celt  of  the  octagonal  form  of  section  and  without  a  loop  is  shown  in 
Fig.  160.  It  formed  part  of  the  great  hoard  found  at  CarltonEode,  near 
Attleborough,  Norfolk,  of  which  some  particulars  have  already  been 
given.  The  joint  marks  of  the  moulds  are  still  very  distinct  upon  the 

*  "  Nat.  Hist.  Staff.,"  p.  404,  pi.  xxxiii.  7.         t  Arch.,  vol.  v.  pi.  viii.  23,  p.  118. 
I  "Zeitsch.  fur  Eth.,"  vol.  vii.  Taf.  viii.  4. 


134  SOCKETED   CELTS  [CHAP.  V. 

sides.  This  specimen  is  in  the  Norwich  Museum,  and  was  kindly  lent  by 
the  trustees  for  me  to  have  it  engraved.  A  nearly  similar  Scottish  celt  is 
shown  in  Fig.  1 65.  A  celt  from  the  hoard  of  Cumberlow,  near  Baldock,*  has 
been  figured  as  having  no  loop,  but  I  believe  that  this  has  arisen  from  an 
error  of  the  engraver,  as  in  a  drawing  which  I  have  seen  the  loop  is  present. 

One  of  hexagonal  section  and  socket  from  a  hoard  found  on  Earsley 
Common,!  Yorkshire,  in  1735,  is  engraved  as  having  no  loop. 

Celts  without  loops  are  not  uncommon  in  France,  and  are  often  found 
of  small  size  in  Denmark.  J 

Socketed  celts  have  rarely  if  ever  been  found  with  interments  in 
barrows  in  Britain.  Sir  R.  Colt  Hoare  mentions  "  a  little  celt  "  as 
having  been  found  with  a  small  lance,  and  a  long  pin  with  a  handle, 
all  of  bronze,  near  the  head  of  a  skeleton,  in  a  barrow  on  Overton 
HillJ  near  Abury,  Wilts.  The  body  had  been  buried  in  the  con- 
tracted attitude,  and  had,  as  was  thought,  been  enclosed  within  the 
trunk  of  a  tree.  It  appears,  however,  from  Dr.  Tlmrnam's 
account,  II  that  this  was  a  flat  and  not  a  socketed  celt.  It  was  a 
celt  like  Fig.  116,  3£  inches  long,  which  is  reported  to  have  been 
discovered  by  the  late  Rev.  R.  Kirwan  in  a  barrow  on  Broad  Down, 
Farway,  Devonshire.lf  It  is  said  to  have  lain  in  the  midst  of  an 
abundant  deposit  of  charcoal  which  was  thought  to  be  the  remains 
of  a  funeral  pyre.  Mr.  Kirwan  informed  Dr.  Thurnam  that  there 
was  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  celt  was  deposited  where  found 
at  the  time  of  the  original  interment.  No  bones,  however,  were 
actually  with  the  celt,  which  lay  1 8  inches  from  the  central  cist. 
A  socketed  celt  with  three  vertical  ribs,  like  Fig.  125,  is  also 
said  to  have  been  found  with  a  human  skeleton,  and  two 
uninscribed  ancient  British  coins  of  silver,  at  Cann,**  near 
Shaftesbury,  in  1849.  The  celt  and  coins  are  now  in  the 
collection  of  Mr.  Durden,  of  Blandford.  In  neither  case 
are  the  circumstances  of  the  discovery  absolutely  certain. 
A  curious  instance  of  the  survival  of  the  bronze  celt 
as  an  ornament  or  amulet  is  afforded  by  that  which  was 
found  in  a  barrow  at  Arras,  or  Hessleskew,tt  near  Market 
Weighton,  Yorkshire.  It  is  only  an  inch  in  length, 
and  is  shown  full-size  in  Fig.  161.  With  it  was  a  pin 
which  connected  it  with  a  small  light-blue  glass  bead.  It  accom- 
panied the  contracted  body  of  a  woman  laid  in  a  grave,  and 

*  Journ.  Anth.  Inst.,  vol.  vi.  p.  195.  f  Arch.,  vol.  v.  pi.  viii.  7,  p.  114. 

I  Segested,  "  Oldsag.  fra  Broholm,"  pi.  xxiii.  8. 

§  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  ii.  p.  90.  ||  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  443. 

II  Trans.  Dev.  Assoc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  300,  pi.  ii.  1. 
**  Evans,  "  Anc.  British  Coins,"  p.  102. 

ft  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  156;  Arch.  Inst.,  York  vol.  Catal.,  p.  27. 


OF   DIMINUTIVE    SIZE.  135 

having  with  it  a  necklace  of  glass  beads,  a  large  amber  bead,  and 
a  brooch,  bracelets,  ring,  tweezers,  and  pin,  apparently  of  bronze, 
some  of  them  ornamented  with  a  kind  of  paste  or  enamel.  The 
majority  of  the  objects  found  in  the  group  of  barrows  at  Arras, 
of  which  this  was  one,  seem  to  belong  to  what  Mr.  Franks  has 
termed  the  "Late-Celtic"  period,  or  approximately  to  the  time 
of  the  Roman  invasion  of  this  country. 

Socketed  celts  not  more  than  |  of  an  inch  in  length  have  been 
found  in  Ireland,  but  with  sockets  large  enough  for  serviceable 
handles,  so  that  they  might  possibly  have  been  used  as  chisels. 
The  diminutive  celts,  about  2  inches  in  length,  which  have  been 
found  in  large  numbers  in  Brittany,  and  have  been  regarded  by 
French  antiquaries  as  votive  offerings,  might  also  by  some  possi- 
bility have  served  as  tools  ;  but  this  can  hardly  have  been  the 
case  with  the  Arras  specimen.  A  golden  celt 
found  in  Cornwall  is  said  to  have  been  in  the 
possession  of  the  Earl  of  Falmouth,*  but  nothing 
is  known  of  it  by  the  present  Viscount  Fal- 
mouth, and  the  statement  in  the  "Barrow  Dig- 
gers" is  probably  erroneous. 

It  will  be  well  to  postpone  the  account  of  the 
different  hoards  of  bronze  objects,  in  which 
socketed  celts  have  been  found  with  other  tools 
and  weapons,  until  I  come  to  treat  of  such  an- 
cient deposits,  though  some  of  them  have  al- 
ready been  mentioned. 

Turning  now  to  the  socketed  celts  which  have 
been  discovered  in  Scotland,  we  find  them  to  present  a  considerable 
variety  of  types,  though  hardly  so  great  as  that  exhibited  by  those 
from  England,    and    the  recorded  instances   of  their  finding  are 
comparatively  few  in  number. 

In  Fig.  162  is  shown  a  socketed  celt  of  the  plain  kind  which  was  found  at 
Bell's  Mills, f  on  the  Water  of  Leith,  Edinburgh,  in  company  with  those 
given  as  Figs.  164  and  165. 

A  celt  found  in  a  bog  between  Stranraer  and  Portpatrick,  Wigton- 
sMre,J  like  Fig.  162,  but  with  a  bead  at  the  level  of  the  top  of  the  loop, 
has  been  figured. 

The  nearly  square-necked  celt  shown  in  Fig.  163  is  of  a  broader  type 
than  usual,  and  was  found  at  North  Knapdale,§  Argyleshire. 

*  "  Barrow  Diggers,"  1839,  p.  72. 

t  For  the  use  of  these  cuts  I  am  indebted  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland. 

%  "  Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,"  vol.  ii.  p.  10. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  196. 


136 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


Socketed  celts  with  oval  necks,  and  resembling  the  common  Irish  type, 
Fig.  167,  in  form,  have  occasionally  been  found  in  Scotland.  One  (3£ 
inches),  with  a  double  moulding  round  the  mouth,  was  found  on  Arthur's 
Seat,  Edinburgh.  Another  (3  inches)  was  found  with  several  other  socketed 
celts  and  a  spear-head  near  the  Loch  of  Forfar.  One  of  these,  like  Fig. 
150,  has  a  round  socket  and  a  twelve-sided  neck. 

A  celt  with  a  long  socket  and  narrow  blade  was  found,  with  spear-heads, 
bronze  armlets,  and  some  pieces  of  tin,  at  Achtertyre,*  Moray  shire. 

Another  type,  which  appears  to  be  more  especially  Scottish,  has  the 
ornamented  moulding  placed  on  the  neck  of  the  blade  in  such  a  manner 
as  to  run  through  the  loop.  One  of  this  character,  dug  up  near  Samson's 
Ribs,f  Arthur's  Seat,  Edinburgh,  has  been  figured  by  Professor  Daniel 
Wilson.  A  second  (2^  inches),  with  three  raised  bands  passing  through 
the  loop,  was  found  in  the  Forest  of  Birse,J  Aberdeenshire. 


Fig.  163.— 


Fig.  164.—  Bell's  Mills 


Fig.  165.-Bell's  Mills. 


A  type  which  is  also  common  to  England  is  shown  in  Fig.  1 64  from 
another  of  the  Bell's  Mills  specimens. 

Others  with  raised  lines  on  the  sides  are  preserved  in  the  museum  at 
Edinburgh.  One  of  these  was  found  near  the  citadel  at  Leith.§ 

One  (3£  inches),  ornamented  with  four  longitudinal  lines  on  each  face, 
was  found  in  the  parish  of  Southend,  ||  Cantire.  Another  (4  J  inches), 
with  traces  of  five  ribs,  three  down  the  middle  and  two  at  the  margins  of 
each  face,  was  found  at  Hangingshaw,^f  in  Culter  parish,  Lanarkshire. 

A  third  celt  from  Bell's  Mills  is  shown  in  Fig.  1 65.  This  is  of  the  variety 
without  the  loop,  and  closely  resembles  that  from  the  Carlton  Eode 
hoard,  Fig.  160,  the  main  difference  being  that  the  neck  is  of  decagonal 
instead  of  octagonal  section. 

Moulds  for  celts  of  other  patterns  have  also  been  found  in  Scotland, 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435. 

J  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  153. 

||  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  396. 

If  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  pi.  xi.  5,  p.  111. 


t  "Preh.  Ann.  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  pp.  351,  384. 
§  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  xii.  p.  209. 


FOUND    IN    SCOTLAND. 


137 


as  will  subsequently  be  seen.  A  modern  cast  from  some  moulds  found 
at  Eosskeen,  Eoss-shire,  has  been  engraved  by  Professor  D.  Wilson.*  It 
is  of  hexagonal  section,  and  is  ornamented  on  each  face  by  two  diverging 
ribs  starting  from  an  annulet  close  below  the  moulding  round  the  mouth, 
and  ending  in  two  annulets  about  two-thirds  of  the  way  down  the  blade, 
which  expands  considerably,  and  has  a  nearly  flat  edge. 

For  the  use  of  Fig.  166  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  f  of  the  Ayrshire 
and  Wigtonshire  Archaeological  Association.  The  original  was  found 
in  a  peat-moss  near  the  farm-house  of  Knock  and  Maize,  in  Leswalt 
parish,  Wigtonshire,  and  is  now  in  the  cabinet  of  the  Earl  of  Stair.  Its 


Fig.  166.— Leswalt 


analogies  with  that  found  at  Kingston,  Surrey  (Fig.  142),  are  very 
striking,  while  at  the  same  time  it  closely  resembles  the  type  exhibited  by 
the  mould  from  Eoss-shire  already  mentioned.  The  occurrence  of  instru- 
ments of  so  rare  a  form  at  such  a  distance  apart  is  very  remarkable ;  but 
if,  as  appears  probable,  the  celts  of  this  type  are  among  the  latest  which 
were  manufactured,  and  may  possibly  belong  even  to  the  Late  Celtic 
period,  their  wide  dissemination  is  the  less  wonderful. 

Socketed  celts  have  been  found  in  very  large  numbers  in  Ireland, 
upwards  of  two  hundred  being  preserved   in  the  Museum  of  the 

*  "  Preh.  Ann.  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  384,  fig.  61.  t  "  Collections,"  vol.  ii.  p.  11. 


138 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


Royal  Irish  Academy ;  and  numerous  specimens  are  to  be  seen  in 
other  collections,  both  public  and  private.  Mr.  R.  Day,  F.S.A.,  of 
Cork,  has  upwards  of  forty  in  his  own  cabinet.  The  Irish  celts 
vary  much  in  size,  the  largest  being  a  little  over  5  inches  long, 
and  the  smallest  less  than  an  inch.  The  most  common  form  is 
oval  at  the  neck,  and  expands  into  a  broad  cutting  edge.  There 
is  usually  some  kind  of  moulding  round  the  mouth,  giving  the  end 
of  the  instrument  a  trumpet-like  appearance.  The  effect  of  the 


Fig.  167.— Ireland. 


Fig.  168.— Ireland. 


moulding  is  not  unfrequently   exaggerated   by   a  hollow   fluting 
round  the  neck,  as  in  Fig.  167. 

Celts  of  this  and  some  of  the  following  types  have  been  figured  by 
Vallancey.* 

In  that  shown  as  Fig.  168  there  is  a  slight  shoulder  below  the  trumpet- 
shaped  part  of  the  mouth,  and  the  loop,  instead  of  springing  straight 
out  from  the  neck,  has  its  ends  extended  into  four  ridges,  running  over 
the  neck  of  the  celt  like  half -buried  roots. 

An  example  of  a  celt  with  the  loop  attached  in  a  similar  manner  has 
been  engraved  by  Wilde.f  Another  (3f  inches)  is  in  the  collection  of 
Mr.  E.  Day,  F.S.A. 


Vol.  iv.  pi.  ix.  3,  4,  6. 


f  "Catal.  Mus.  K.  I  A.,"  p.  392,  fig.  306. 


FOUND    IN    IRELAND. 


139 


Fig.  169  shows  a  finely  patinated  celt,  with  a  triple  moulding 
below  the  expanding  mouth,  which  was  found  near  Belfast.  With 
it  are  said  to  have  been  found  a  set  of  three  gold  clasps,  or  so-called 
fibulae,  with  discs  at  each  end  of  a  slug-like  half-ring  (see  Wilde, 
Figs.  594 — 598).  Curiously  enough,  I  have  another  set  of  three 
of  these  ornaments,  also  found  together  at  Craighilly,  near  Bally- 
mena,  Co.  Antrim.  Mr.  Robert  Day,  F.S.A.,  has  a  specimen  which 
also  is  one  of  three  found  together  in  the  Co.  Down.  It  seems, 


Fig.  170.-Ireland. 


therefore,   probable  that,   like  our  modern  shirt-studs,  these  orna- 
ments were  worn  in  sets  of  three. 

A  celt  with  four  hands  (3£  inches)  has  been  engraved  by  Wilde.*  The 
middle  member  of  the  triple  band  is  often  much  the  largest. 

A  small  example  of  the  same  type,  but  with,  a  single  band  at  the 
mouth,  is  shown  in  Fig.  170.  One  from  Co.  Antrim,  If  inch  long  and  1^ 
inch  broad  at  the  edge,  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

These  oval-necked  celts  are  occasionally,  but  rarely,  decorated  with 
patterns  cast  in  relief  upon  them.  One  of  them,  in  the  Museum  of  the 
Eoyal  Irish  Academy,  f  is  shown  in  Fig.  171. 

Inside  the  sockets  of  most  of  the  instruments  of  this  class  there  are  near 
the  bottom,  where  the  two  sides  converge,  one,  two,  or  more  vertical 
ridges,  probably  destined  to  aid  in  steadying  the  haft. 

In  some  instances  the  upper  member  of  the  moulding  round  the  mouth 

*  P.  385,  fig.  279. 

t  Wilde»  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  T.  A.,"  p.  385,  fig.  280.  This  cut  is  kindly  lent  by  the 
Council. 


140 


SOCKETED    CELTS 


[CHAP.  v. 


is  cast  in  a  cable  pattern.  Fig.  172  shows  an  example  of  this  kind  from 
Athboy,  Co.  Meath,  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.  Others 
are  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy. 

Socketed  celts,  with  vertical  ribs  on  the  faces,  are  of  rare  occurrence  in 
Ireland.  A  specimen  from  Co.  Meath,  in  Canon  Grreenwell's  collection, 
is  engraved  as  Fig.  173. 

One  (2f  inches)  found  near  Cork,  and  now  in  Mr.  Eobert  Day's  collec- 
tion, has  six  vertical  ribs  on  each  face,  three  on  either  margin.  They 
are  placed  close  together,  and  vary  in  length,  the  outer  one  being  about 
twice  as  long  as  that  in  the  middle,  which  is,  however,  nearly  three  times 
as  long  as  the  innermost  of  the  three  ribs. 

I  have  an  example  of  the  same  kind  (2|  inches),  from  Trillick,  Co.  Tyrone,* 


Fig.  172.— Athboy. 


Fig.  173. -Meath. 


Fig.  174.— Ireland. 


in  which  there  are  five  equidistant  vertical  ribs  on  each  face.  The  edge 
has  been  much  hammered,  so  as  to  be  considerably  recurved  at  the  ends. 
Wilde  f  has  figured  a  much  larger  specimen  (4£  inches),  with  three  vertical 
ribs,  which  cross  a  ring,  level  with  the  top  of  the  loop,  and  run  up  to  the 
lip  moulding.  Another,  J  with  rectangular  socket,  has  the  ribs  arranged 
in  the  usual  manner.  In  a  few  instances  the  ribs  end  in  pellets,  and  in 
one  instance  Wilde  §  describes  them  as  "  ending  in  arrow  points." 

A  short  but  broad  socketed  celt  in  the  Petrie  Collection  has  on  each  face 
six  vertical  ribs  terminating  at  each  end  in  annulets. 

The  socketed  celts  with  an  almost  square  socket  and  neck  are  not  so 
common  in  Ireland  as  those  of  the  broad  type  with  an  oval  neck,  but  are 

*  Engraved  in  Journ.  Hoy.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  4th  Ser.  vol.  v.  p.  259. 
t  Fig.  282.  J  Fig.  284.      '  $   P.  429. 


FOUND    IN    IRELAND. 


141 


yet  not  absolutely  rare.  Fig.  174  shows  a  good  specimen  of  this  type. 
I  have  another  (3£  inches),  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Belfast,  rather 
wider  at  the  edge,  and  with  three  flat  vertical  ribs  below  the  neck 
moulding. 

Fig.  175  shows  a  short  variety  of  the  same  type,  from  Newtown  Crom- 
molin,  Co.  Antrim.  One  from  Trillick,  Co.  Tyrone  (2£  inches),  though 
nearly  rectangular  at  the  neck,  has  an  oval  socket. 

Mr.  Eobert  Day  has  an  example  (3£  inches),  from  Dunshaughlin,  Co. 
Meath,  with  two  beads  round  it,  the  lower  one  at  the  level  of  the  bottom 
of  the  loop.  This  celt  is  rectangular  at  the  neck,  though  the  socket  is 
oval. 

Some  few  have  grooves  running  down  the  angles.  One  from  London- 
derry (4£  inches)  is  in  Mr.  Day's  collection. 

The  long  narrow  celt  with  a  rib  ending  in  an  annulet  on  the  face, 
engraved  by  Wilde  as  Fig.  283,  appears  to  me  to  belong  to  Brittany 
rather  than  to  Ireland. 


Fig-  175 
Newtown  Crommolin. 


An  elegant  type  of  socketed  celt  of  not  uncommon  occurrence  in  Ireland 
is  shown  in  Fig.  176.  The  neck  is  octagonal  below  the  rounded  trumpet 
mouth,  which  is  ornamented  with  a  series  of  small  parallel  beads,  between 
which  a  number  of  minute  conical  depressions  have  been  punched,  making 
the  beads  appear  to  be  corded.  Around  the  loop  is  an  oval  of  similar 
punch  marks.  A  nearly  similar  specimen  has  been  engraved  by  Wilde 
(CataL,  Fig.  276),  who  also  gives  one  of  the  same  general  type,  but 
with  two  plain  broad  beads,  alternating  with  three  narrow  ones,  round 
the  mouth  (Catal.,  Fig.  277).  It  has  a  hexagonal  neck.  A  celt  (4£  inches) 
from  Ballina,  Co.  Mayo,  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Eobert  Day,  F.S.A., 
has  an  octagonal  neck,  and  five  grooved  lines  round  its  circular  mouth. 

Canon  Greenwell  has  one  of  the  type  of  Fig.  176  (3£  inches),  with 
hexagonal  neck  and  five  equal  beads  round  the  mouth,  from  Carlea,  Co. 


142 


SOCKETED    CELTS, 


[CHAP.  v. 


Fig.  178.—  Ireland 


Longford,  and  another  (3£  inches),  -with  ten  small  beads  round  a  some- 
what oval  mouth,  from  Arboe,  Co.  Tyrone.  The  neck  of  this  latter  is 
nearly  rectangular.  I  have  a  celt  of  this  type  from  Balbriggan,  Co. 
Dublin  (3£  inches),  with  a  hexagonal  neck  and  a  plain  mouth.  The 
loop  has  root-like  excrescences  from  it,  as  already  described. 

There  is  one  more  Irish  type  of  looped  socketed  celts  which  it  will  be  well 
to  figure,  and  to  which  Wilde  has  given  the  name  of  the  axe-shaped  socketed 
celt.     As  will  be  seen,  the  blade  is  expanded  considerably  below  the 
socketed  part,  and  assumes  a  form  not  uncommon  among  iron  or  steel 
axes.     I  have  copied  Fig.  177  from  Wilde's  cut,  No. 
281,  on  an  enlarged  scale. 

A  socketed  celt  expanding  into  a  broad  axe-like 
edge  is  in  the  Pesth  Museum. 

ATI  analogous  but  narrower  form  is  found  in  France. 
I  have  seen  the  drawing  of  one  found  at  Pontpoint, 
Oise  (?). 

Socketed  celts  without  loops  have  not  unfrequently 
been  found  in  Ireland.  One  of  this  type  has  been 
figured  by  Wilde,*  whose  cut  is,  by  the  kindness  of 
the  Council  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,  here  repro- 
duced as  Fig.  178.  There  are  two  others  in  the  same 
collection.  Another  of  the  same  length  (2-^  inches),  but  wider  at  the 
edge,  was  found  in  the  Shannon,f  at  Keelogue  Ford.  A  longer  and 
narrower  instrument  (3f  inches)  of  the  same  kind  has  also  been  engraved 
by  Wilde.  |  Another  has  been  engraved  by  Vallancey.§  Others  (2  and 
2£  inches)  from  Lisburn  and  Ballymoney,  Co.  Antrim,  are  in  the  British 
Museum.  The  former  has  a  small  bead  on  a 
level  with  the  base  of  the  socket.  The  latter 
is  oval  at  the  neck,  but  oblong  at  the  mouth. 
A  bronze  instrument  of  this  form,  but 
wider  at  the  edge,  was  in  common  use  among 
the  ancient  Egyptians,  and  has  been  re- 
garded as  a  hoe. 

A  socketed  celt  without  loop,  but  with  two 
projections  on  one  side,  from  the  Sanda  Val- 
ley, ||  Yunan,  China,  has  been  figured  by 
Dr.  Anderson.  The  edge  is  very  oblique. 
An  example  brought  from  Yunan  by  the 
same  expedition  is  in  the  Christy  Collection. 
One  from  Cambodia,  ^|  without  loop,  but  in 
form  like  Fig.  119,  has  been  figured  by  Dr. 
Noulet. 

A  very  remarkable  socketed  celt  without 
loop  from  Java  is  in  the  Cabinet  of  Coins  at 
Stuttgart.  It  expands  widely  at  the  edge 
and  has  three  facets  on  one  side  of  the  neck,  while  the  other  is  curved, 
so  that  it  was  probably  mounted  as  an  adze.  The  surface  of  the  socket 
is  not  flat,  but  there  is  a  V-shaped  depression  across  it. 

»  P.  384,  fig.  275.  t  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xi.  p.  170. 

J  P.  521,  fig.  398.  §  Vol.  iv.  pi.  ix.  7. 

||  Eeport  on  "  Expedit.  to  Western  Yunan,"  Calcutta,  1871,  p.  414. 
51  "  Areh.  du  Mus.  d'Hist.  Nat.  de  Toulouse,"  vol.  i.  pi.  vi.  6. 


Fig.  179.— Kertch. 


MAINLY   OF    NATIVE   MANUFACTURE.  143 

Socketed  celts  with,  two  loops  have  not  as  yet  been  recorded  as  found 
•within  the  United  Kingdom,  though  a  stone  mould  for  celts  of  this  form 
was  found  at  Bulford  Water,  Salisbury.  In  Eastern  Europe  the  form  is 
more  common.  The  specimen  shown  as  Fig.  179  was  found  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Kertch,*  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  I  have  seen 
others  ornamented  on  the  faces,  brought  from  Asiatic  Siberia  by  Mr.  H. 
Seebohm.  Others  from  Siberia  f  have  been  figured.  One  of  these  is 
without  loops,  and  has  chevron  ornaments  in  relief  below  a  double 
moulding. 

A  socketed  celt  with  two  loops,  and  apparently  hexagonal  at  the  neck, 
found  at  Ell,  near  Benfeld,  Alsace,  is  figured  by  Schneider. J 

I  have  elsewhere  described  a  two-looped  socketed  celt  from  Portugal  § 
(6£  inches).  It  is  like  Eig.  120,  but  has  a  second  loop.  Another,  of 
gigantic  dimensions,  9£  inches  long  and  3£  inches  wide,  was  found  in 
Estremadura,  Spain.  || 

A  two-looped  celt  with  square  socket  and  the  loops  at  the  junction  with 
the  flattened  blade  was  in  the  great  hoard  found  at  Bologna.  Only  one 
of  the  loops,  however,  is  perforated. 

In  the  museum  at  Stockholm  are  also  some  socketed  celts  with  two  loops. 

In  looking  over  these  pages,  it  will  have  been  observed,  that 
though  socketed  celts  occur  in  numbers  throughout  the  British  Isles, 
yet  that  those  found  in  England  for  the  most  part  differ  in  form 
from  those  found  in  Ireland,  and  that  some  few  types  appear  to 
be  peculiar  to  Scotland.  Traces  of  continental  influence  are,  as 
might  have  been  expected,  most  evident  in  the  forms  found  in  the 
southern  counties  of  England,  and  are  barely,  if  at  all,  perceptible 
in  those  from  Ireland  and  Scotland.  Some  few  of  the  socketed  celts 
from  both  England  and  Scotland  are  of  the  type  Fig.  167 — a  type 
so  common  in  Ireland  as  to  be  characteristic  of  it — and  these 
appear  for  the  most  part,  though  by  no  means  exclusively,  to 
have  been  found  in  western  counties.  Although,  therefore,  the  first 
socketed  celts  in  Britain  were  doubtless  of  foreign  origin,  there 
was  no  regular  importation  of  them  for  use  over  the  whole  country  ; 
but  the  fashion  of  making  them  spread  through  local  foundries, 
and  different  varieties  of  pattern  originated  in  various  centres, 
and  were  adopted  over  larger  or  smaller  areas  as  they  happened 
to  commend  themselves  to  the  taste  of  the  bronze-using  public. 
The  use  of  socketed  celts  would,  from  their  abundance,  seem 
to  have  extended  over  a  considerable  period ;  and  from  their 
having  apparently  been  found  with  objects  belonging  to  the  Late 

*  -Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  91.  For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  Mr. 
A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S. 

f  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  13  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  262  ;  Mem.  des 
Ant.  du  Nord,  1872 — 7,  p.  116,  &c. 

I  "Die  ehern.  Streitkeile,"  Taf.  ii.  12.          §   Trant.  Ethn.  Soc.,  N.  S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  45 

||  "  Cong,  preh."  Copenhagen  vol.  p.  352. 


141  SOCKETED    CELTS  [cHAP.  V. 

Celtic  Period  they  must  have  been  among  the  last  of  the  bronze 
tools  or  weapons  to  be  superseded  by  those  of  iron.  A  socketed 
celt,  somewhat  like  Fig.  116  but  more  trumpet-mouthed,  is  stated 
to  have  been  found  in  company  with  a  looped  spear-head,  two 
pins  like  Figs.  453  and  458,  a  bronze  bridle-bit,  and  some  por- 
tions of  buckles  of  a  late  Celtic  character  on  Hagbourne  Hill, 
Berks.  These  objects  are  now  in  the  British  Museum,  and  there 
seems  reason  to  believe  the  account  of  their  discovery  given  in 
the  Archceologia*  Some  coins  of  gold  and  silver  are  said  to  have 
been  found  with  them,  but  these  are  not  forthcoming.  Socketed 
celts  have  also  been  found  associated  with  clasps  like  Figs.  504 
and  505  at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens,  while  at  Abergele  such  clasps 
accompanied  buckles  almost,  if  not  quite,  late  Celtic  in  character. 

No  doubt  the  final  disuse  of  socketed  celts  was  not  contempo- 
raneous throughout  the  whole  of  the  country,  and  their  employ- 
ment probably  survived  in  the  north  and  west  of  Britain  and  in 
Ireland  to  a  considerably  later  date  than  in  the  districts  more 
accessible  to  Gaulish  influences.  The  chronology  of  our  Bronze 
Period  will,  however,  have  to  be  considered  in  a  subsequent 
chapter.  The  transition  from  bronze  to  iron  cannot  so  readily 
be  traced  in  this  country  as  on  the  Continent ;  but  socketed 
celts,  &c.  formed  of  iron,  and  made  in  imitation  of  those  in  bronze, 
have  occasionally  been  found  in  Britain.  One  (4  inches)  with  a 
side  loop,  and  a  part  of  its  wooden  handle,  was  found  in  Merioneth- 
shire, and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  It  has  been  figured 
in  the  Archeeologia  Cambrensis.f  Another  of  the  same  type  was 
found  in  North  Wales.  J 

I  have  one  (5^  inches)  with  a  rounded  socket  and  no  loop,  found 
at  Gray's  Thurrock,  Essex. 

I  have  another  (4  inches)  with  a  square  socket,  from  Pfaffen- 
burg  in  the  Hartz  ;  and  others  of  longer  proportions  with  round 
sockets  from  Hallstatt.  The  metal  has  been  carefully  welded 
together  to  form  the  sockets,  in  which  there  is  no  slit  like  those 
commonly  to  be  seen  in  more  modern  socketed  tools  of  iron. 
There  are  ornaments  round  the  mouth  of  some  of  the  Hallstatt  § 
socketed  celts,  and  both  they  and  the  iron  palstaves  are  frequently 
provided  with  a  side  loop,  in  exact  accordance  with  those  on  their 
analogues  in  bronze.  Some  of  the  socketed  celts  in  iron  from 

*  Vol.  xvi.  p.  348.  f  3rd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  250. 

I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  518. 
\  Von  Sacken,  "  Grabf.  v.  Hallst.,"  Taf.  vii. 


FORMED    OF    IRON.  145 

the  cemetery  of  Watsch,*  in  Carniola,  are  also  provided  with  a 
loop. 

As  an  illustration  of  the  view  that  similar  wants,  with  similar 
means  at  command  with  which  to  supply  them,  lead  to  the  produc- 
tion of  similar  forms  of  tools  and  weapons  in  countries  widely 
remote  from  each  other,  I  may  mention  a  socketed  celt  (10^ 
inches)  found  in  an  ancient  grave  near  Copiapo,  Chili,  t  In  general 
form  it  is  almost  identical  with  some  of  the  Italian  bronze  celts, 
but  it  is  of  copper,  and  not  bronze ;  and  is  not  cast,  but  wrought  with 
the  hammer.  The  socket  has,  therefore,  been  formed  in  the  same 
manner  as  those  of  the  early  iron  celts  from  Hallstatt,  with  which 
it  also  closely  corresponds  in  outline.  The  surface,  however,  has 
been  ornamented  by  engraving ;  and  among  the  patterns  we  find 
bands  of  chevrons,  alternately  plain  and  hatched,  closely  allied  to 
the  common  ornament  of  the  European  Bronze  Age.  What  is, 
perhaps,  more  striking  still  is  that  the  Greek  fret  also  occurs  as  an 
ornament  on  the  faces. 

The  method  in  which  socketed  and  other  celts  were  hafted 
will  be  discussed  in  the  next  chapter. 

*  Deschmann.  und  Hochstetter,   "Prah.  Ansied,  u.  Begr.  Btatt.  in  Krain.,"   1879, 
Taf.  xvi. 
t  Rev.  Arch.,  vol.  xxiii.  p.  257,  pi.  viii. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

METHODS   OF    HAFTING   CELTS. 

ANY  account  of  the  various  forms  of  celts  and  palstaves  which 
have  been  discovered  in  this  country,  such  as  that  attempted  in 
the  preceding  chapters,  would  be  incomplete  without  some  observa- 
tions as  to  the  manner  in  which  they  were  probably  hafted  or 
mounted  for  use,  and  some  account  of  the  discoveries  which  throw 
light  upon  that  subject. 

In  a  previous  chapter  I  have  cited  numerous  opinions  of  the 
older  school  of  antiquaries  as  to  the  nature  of  these  instruments 
or  weapons,  and  the  uses  which  they  were  intended  to  serve. 
Many  of  these  opinions  are  so  palpably  absurd  that  it  is  needless 
again  to  refer  to  them.  Others  which  regard  the  instruments  as 
having  been  mounted  in  such  a  manner  as  to  serve  for  axes  or 
adzes,  for  chisels,  or  for  spud-like  tools  or  weapons,  have  an 
evident  foundation  in  the  necessities  of  the  case.  There  can,  in 
the  first  place,  be  no  doubt  that  celts  and  palstaves  were  cutting 
tools  or  weapons.  There  can,  in  the  second  place,  be  but  little 
doubt  that  they  were  not  destined  for  direct  use  in  the  hand 
without  the  addition  of  any  shaft  or  handle.  In  fact,  with  the 
palstave  and  socketed  forms,  it  is  evident  that  special  provisions  are 
made  for  a  haft  of  some  kind.  In  the  third  place,  this  haft, 
whether  long  or  short,  must  either  have  been  straight  or  crooked. 
If  straight,  a  kind  of  chisel  or  spud  must  have  resulted ;  if 
crooked  or  L-shaped,  an  axe,  hatchet,  or  adze. 

It  is  possible  that  the  same  form  of  bronze  instruments  may 
have  been  mounted  both  with  straight  and  with  L-shaped  handles ; 
but,  as  will  subsequently  be  seen,  the  probability,  judging  from 
what  few  ancient  handles  have  been  discovered,  is  that  the  great 
majority  were  mounted  with  elbowed  handles  as  axes.  At  the 
same  time,  from  the  form  and  small  size  of  some  celts,  especially 
of  some  of  those  of  the  socketed  variety,  it  is  probable  that  they 


AXES    OF    BRONZE.  147 

were  used  as  chisels.  Indeed,  judging  from  the  analogy  of  some 
other  forms,  and  from  the  discovery  at  Everley,  mentioned  at 
p.  163,  this  may  be  regarded  as  certain. 

As  the  discoveries  of  the  original  hafts  of  bronze  celts  have 
principally  been  made  upon  the  Continent,  I  shall,  in  treating 
of  this  part  of  my  subject,  be  compelled  to  have  recourse  to  foreign 
rather  than  British  illustrations.  It  will  also,  in  speaking  of  the 
method  of  hafting,  be  desirable  to  make  an  attempt  to  trace  the 
successive  stages  of  development  of  the  socketed  celts  ;  and,  in  con- 
nection with  this  part  of  the  subject  also,  foreign  examples  will 
become  of  service. 

And  first,  in  illustration  of  the  use  of  bronze  blades  as  axes, 
rather  than  as  spuds,  or  chisels  of  any  kind,  I  may  mention  an 
instrument  not  uncommon  in  Hungary,  and  occasionally  occurring 
in  other  parts  of  Southern  Europe,  which  is  perforated  and 
similar  in  general  form  to  our  modern  axe-heads  of  iron  and 
steel.  In  Scandinavia  also  other  varieties  of  these  perforated 
axe-heads  have  been  found.  The  common  axe-like  type  has  also 
been  discovered  among  Assyrian  antiquities.  Another  and  distinct 
form  which  has  been  found  in  Egypt  mounted  as  an  axe  or 
hatchet,  with  a  wooden  handle,  is  a  flat  blade  not  unlike  the 
ordinary  flat  celt,  except  that  instead  of  tapering  at  the  butt-end 
it  expands  so  as  to  have  two  more  or  less  projecting  horns,  by 
which  it  was  bound  against  the  haft  in  a  shallow  socket  provided 
for  it.  Egyptian  axes  mounted  in  this  manner  may  be  seen  in 
many  museums,  and  have  been  frequently  figured  in  works  on 
Egyptian  antiquities.*  The  blade  of  an  axe  of  this  kind,  formerly 
in  the  collection  of  the  Rev.  Sparrow  Simpson,  D.D.,  F.S.A.,f 
and  by  him  presented  to  the  British  Museum,  bears  an  inscrip- 
tion in  hieroglyphics  upon  it,  with  cartouches  probably  containing 
the  name  of  a  shepherd  king  of  the  sixteenth  or  seventeenth 
dynasty.  In  my  own  collection  is  another  bronze  blade  of  the 
same  shape  and  size,  and  with  the  same  inscription,  except  that 
the  names  in  the  cartouches  are  different.  Unfortunately  this 
part  of  the  blade  is  corroded,  but  Dr.  S.  Birch  thinks  that  the 
cartouches  contain  the  name  either  of  Ramses  I.  or  of  a  subordinate 
Ramses  of  the  eighteenth  dynasty.  The  hieroglyphics  are  the 
same  on  both  faces  of  the  blade,  but  on  one  run  from  right  to  left, 
and  on  the  other  from  left  to  right.  A  hatchet  of  the  same  form, 

*  See  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  p.  376. 
t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  rol.  xxiii.  p.  293,  pi.  xv. 
L  2 


148 


METHODS   OF    HAFTING   CELTS 


[CHAP.  vi. 


still  bound  to  its  haft,  was  found  in  the  tomb  of  Queen  Aah-Hotep,* 
of  the  eighteenth  dynasty. 

Some  of  the  stone  hatchets  from  Ecuador,  in  South  America, 
are  also  provided  with  projecting  ears,  and  were  tied  against  their 
helves  in  the  same  manner. 

The  stone  axe,  said  to  be  that  of  Montezuma  II.,  preserved  in 
the  Ambras  Museum  at  Vienna,  and  shown  in  Fig.  180,  may  also 
be  of  this  kind.  Copper  or  bronze  blades  of  this  crescent  or 
cheese-cutter  form,  with  two  projecting  lugs  at  the  top  of  the 
narrow  part  of  the  blade,  have  been  found  in  Peru. 


Fig.  180.— Stone  Axe  of  Montezuma  II. 

Broad  blades  of  bronze,  in  form  more  like  the  ordinary  flat 
celts,  but  with  the  projections  at  the  top,  have  been  found  in  the 
same  country.  I  have  one  about  5  inches  long  and  3  inches 
wide,  with  strong  lugs  at  the  top  2  niches  long.  It  came  from 
Eastern  Peru. 

Some  blades  of  this  form  were  hafted  in  a  rather  different 
manner,  as  will  be  seen  by  means  of  Fig.  181. 


Fig.  181.— Aymara  Indian  Hatchet.       J 

This  represents  an  iron  hatchet  used  by  the  Aymara  Indians,  of 
the  province  of  La  Paz,  Bolivia,  which  was  brought  from  that 
country  and  presented  to  me  by  my  friend,  the  late  Mr.  David 
Forbes,  F.R.S.  In  this  form  the  handle  is  split,  and  the  blade  is 
secured  by  a  leather  thong,  two  turns  of  which  pass  under  the  two 
lugs  of  the  blade,  and  thus  prevent  it  from  coming  forward ;  two 

*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  p.  379,  pi.  xix.  7. 


IN    CLUB-LIKE    HANDLES. 


149 


other  turns  pass  over  the  butt-end,  and  thus  prevent  it  from  being 
driven  backwards  by  any  blow ;  while  all  the  coils  of  the  thong  hold 
the  cleft  stick  firmly  against  the  two  faces  of  the  blade.  Although 
no  celts  with  the  T-shaped  butt-end  have  been  found  in  Britain, 
or,  indeed,  in  Western  Europe,  I  have  thought  it  worth  while  to 
engrave  this  curious  example  of  the  method  of  mounting  such 
blades,  especially  as  the  central  projections  of  the  Irish  form  of 
celt,  like  Fig.  45,  may  have  been  secured  by  thongs  in  a  somewhat 
analogous  manner. 

Turning  now  to  the  other  British  forms  of  celts,  of  which,  as 
already  observed,  the  flat  and  doubly  tapering  blades,  like  Fig.  2, 


Fig.  182.-Modem  African  Axe  of  Iron.        J 

seem  to  be  the  most  ancient,  it  is  probable  that  these  were  hafted 
by  the  butt-end  being  merely  driven  into  a  club  or  handle  of 
wood,  in  the  same  manner  as  many  stone  celts  appear  to  have 
been  mounted.  The  modern  iron  hatchet,  from  Western  Africa, 
shown  in  Fig.  182,  will  give  a  good  idea  of  the  manner  in  which 
the  bronze  celts  that  are  so  much  like  it  hi  form  were  probably 
hafted.  Another  modern  African  axe  has  been  engraved  by  Sir 
John  Lubbock.*  It  is,  of  course,  possible  that  some  of  the  ancient 
flat  celts  were  mounted  after  the  manner  of  spuds,  as  is,  by  several 
German  and  Danish  antiquaries,  held  to  have  been  the  case  with 
those  of  the  palstave  form.  It  must,  however,  be  borne  in  mind 

*  "Preh.  Times,"  p.  29.    For  other  examples  see  Klemm,  "Allgem.  Culturwiss.," 
vol.  i.  p.  100. 


150  METHODS   OF   HAFTING    CELTS  [CHAP.  VI. 

that  as  a  rule  the  stone  celts,  which  the  earliest  of  those  in  bronze 
must  in  all  probability  have  supplanted,  were  mounted  after  the 
manner  of  hatchets.  Moreover,  the  few  stone  celts,  the  axis  of  the 
straight  handle  of  which  was  in  the  same  direction  as  the  blade, 
appear  to  have  been  hafted  with  short  handles  as  chisels,  and  not 
with  long  shafts  as  spuds.  Among  those  found  still  attached  to 
their  hafts  in  the  Swiss  lake  dwellings,  some  few  were  mounted  in 
short  stags-horn  handles  as  chisels,  but  the  majority  were  fitted  for 
use  as  hatchets,  with  a  club-like  handle,  in  which  a  short  stag's-horn 
socket  was  mortised  as  affording  a  receptacle  for  the  stone,  harder 
and  less  liable  to  split  than  those  of  wood.  In  some  cases,  however, 
the  handles  were  made  from  a  bough  of  a  tree  with  a  short  pro- 
jectino-  branch,  which  was  cleft  to  receive  the  stone.  One  of 


Fig.  183. — Stone  Axe,  Robenhausen. 


these,  from  Robenhausen,  is  shown  in  Fig.  183,  which  is  copied 
from  Dr.  Keller's  work.* 

In  Britain  the  traces  of  the  original  handles  of  bronze  celts  have 
been  not  unfrequently  found,  though  the  actual  wood  had  perished. 

In  a  barrow  in  the  parish  of  Butterwick,t  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.S.,  found  what  he  describes  as  "  an  axe-blade  of  bronze," 
engraved  as  Fig.  2,  which  lay  with  a  skeleton,  and  "  the  handle, 
which  had  been  under  two  feet  in  length,  could  be  plainly  traced 
by  means  of  a  dark  line  of  decayed  wood  extending  from  the  hips 
towards  the  heels  ;  moreover,  from  the  presence  of  decayed  wood 
on  the  sides  of  the  blade,  it  would  seem  as  if  the  axe  had  been 
protected  by  a  wooden  sheath.  To  all  appearance  the  weapon 
had  been  worn  slung  from  the  waist."  In  this  case  the  blade 
had  been  fixed,  apparently  after  the  manner  of  Fig.  182,  into 
a  solid  handle  to  the  depth  of  two  inches,  as  is  evident  from  the 
surface  of  the  metal  being  oxidized  on  that  part  of  the  blade 
differently  from  what  it  is  elsewhere. 

*  "Lake  Dwellings,"  Eng.  ed.,  p.  110,  pi.  x.  16.  See  also  xi.  2,  and  xxviii.  24 ;  and 
Lindenschmit,  "  Hohenz.  Samml.,"  Taf.  xxix.  4.  f  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  188. 


AS   SEEN    IN    BARROWS.  151 

In  a  barrow  at  Shuttlestone,*  near  Parwich,  Derbyshire,  Mr.  Bate- 
man  found  about  the  middle  of  the  left  thigh  of  a  skeleton  a  bronze 
celt,  of  "  the  plainest  axe-shaped  type.  The  cutting  edge  was 
turned  upwards  towards  the  upper  part  of  the  person,  and  the 
instrument  itself  has  been  inserted  vertically  into  a  wooden  handle 
by  being  driven  in  for  about  two  inches  at  the  narrow  end — at 
least,  the  grain  of  the  wood  runs  in  the  same  direction  as  the 
longest  dimension  of  the  celt."  "A  fact,"  adds  Mr.  Bateman,  "not 
unworthy  of  the  notice  of  any  inclined  to  explain  the  precise 
manner  of  mounting  these  curious  implements."  It  may  be  re- 
marked, however,  that  no  part  of  the  handle  itself,  beyond  this 
grain  upon  the  bronze,  was  preserved,  and  that  this  direction  of 
the  grain  of  the  wood  would  be  quite  consistent  with  the  blade 
having  been  mounted  in  a  side  branch  from  the  shaft,  after  the 
manner  of  the  Swiss  stone  celt  shown  in  Fig.  183. 

It  appears  to  me  possible  that  in  other  cases  where  the  marks 
of  the  grain  of  the  wood,  or  even  the  traces  of  the  wood  itself, 
have  been  found  upon  celts,  running  along  and  not  across  the  blade, 
the  somewhat  hasty  conclusion  has  been  drawn  that  they  were 
attached  to  the  end  of  straight  shafts  instead  of  into  side  branches ; 
and  that  possibly  this  opinion,  when  once  accepted,  may  have 
affected  insensibly  the  reports  of  the  position  of  the  blade  of  the 
celts  with  regard  to  the  bodies  with  which  they  were  found,  and 
to  the  traces  of  their  shafts. 

The  opinion  first  enounced  by  J.  A.  Fabricius  that  the  celt  was 
the  ancient  German  framea  or  spear  mentioned  by  Tacitus,  seems 
also  insensibly  to  have  affected  observers. 

There  is  an  account  given  by  Thorlaciusf  of  the  discovery  in  a 
tumulus  near  Store-Hedinge,  in  Denmark,  of  a  palstave  with  the 
wooden  shaft  an  ell  and  a  quarter  long,  into  which  the  blade  was 
inserted ;  the  wood,  as  might  have  been  expected,  running  down 
between  the  side  wings  ;  at  the  other  end  of  the  shaft  there  was  a 
leather  strap  wound  round  for  about  a  quarter  of  an  ell.  The 
whole  was  so  decayed  that  not  the  least  part  of  it  could  be  taken 
out  of  the  ground.  Although  nothing  appears  to  be  said  with 
regard  to  the  position  of  the  palstave  with  respect  to  the  shaft, 
this  has  been  cited  by  LischJ  and  others  in  evidence  of  this  form  of 
instrument  having  been  mounted  spud-fashion,  as  a  kind  of  chisel- 

*  "  Ten  Years'  Diggings,"  p.  35. 

t  Cited  in  Schreiber's  "  Die  ehernen  Streitkeile,"  Freiburg,  1&42,  p  4. 

%  See  Lisch,  "  Frederico-Francisceum,"  p.  38. 


152  METHODS   OF   HAFTING    CELTS  [CHAP.  VI. 

ended  spear.  A  more  conclusive  instance  is  that  adduced  by  Westen- 
dorp,*  who  has  figured  a  socketed  celt  without  a  loop,  found  in  a 
fen  in  the  province  of  Groningen,  Holland,  mounted  in  this  manner 
on  a  straight  shaft.  I  have,  however,  already  remarked  that 
some  of  the  socketed  celts  of  this  character  were  probably  used  as 
chisels. 

Whatever  reliance  may  be  placed  upon  the  older  discoveries,  all 
those  of  more  recent  times  are  in  favour  of  the  instruments  of  the 
palstave  form  having  been  mounted  as  axes,  hatchets,  or  adzes. 
In  the  museum  at  Salzburg,  Austria,  there  are  at  least  four  crooked 
handles  for  this  kind  of  blade,  found  in  the  salt-mines  of  Hallein, 
one  of  which  is  shown  in  the  annexed  cut.  I  am  not,  however, 


Fig.  184.— Bronze  Axe,  Hallein. 

sure  whether  the  blade  was  actually  found  with  the  haft  in  which  it 
is  now  placed,  nor,  if  so,  whether  it  was  originally  in  its  present  posi- 
tion with  the  loop  outwards.  It  looks  much  more  like  an  Italian 
than  a  German  specimen,  which  has  been  added  to  the  haft  in  recent 
times,  and  it  has  not  the  appearance  of  having  been  exposed  for  cen- 
turies to  the  action  of  salt.  It  seems  more  probable  that  the  salt, 
which  has  fortunately  had  the  power  of  preserving  the  wood,  would 
in  course  of  years  have  dissolved  the  whole  of  the  metal,  assuming 
that  at  the  time  when  the  haft  was  lost,  or  left  in  the  mine,  a 
blade  was  still  attached  to  it,  than  that  it  should  have  left  the 
metal,  as  here,  almost  uninjured.  In  this  instance,  moreover,  the 
haft  is  perfect,  and  not,  as  in  some  of  the  other  cases,  broken, 
so  as  to  raise  an  inference  of  their  having  been  thrown  away. 

*  "  Antiquiteiten,"  iii.  Stuck,  p.  285. 


AFTER   THE    MANNER   OF    AXES.  153 

The  position  of  the  blade  with  the  loop  outwards  is  also  sus- 
picious. 

A  broken  example  of  the  same  kind  of  haft,  also  from  the  salt- 
mines of  Hallein,  has  been  figured  by  Klemm,*  and  is  to  be  seen 
in  the  British  Museum.  There  are  others  in  the  museum  at  Linz. 

Handles  of  the  same  kind,  intended  for  palstaves,  have  been 
found  in  the  Italian  lake  dwellings.  In  some  discovered  in  the 
"  palafitta  "  of  Castione,t  the  notch  is  in  the  transverse  direction 
to  the  shaft,  as  if  the  blade  had  been  mounted  as  an  adze,  and  not 
as  an  axe.  In  others  the  notch  is  longitudinal,  and  not  trans- 
verse. In  one  instance  the  side  branch  has  no  notch,  but  there 
is  a  shoulder  on  it,  as  if  it  had  served  for  a  socketed  celt. 

A  looped  palstave,  mounted  in  a  similar  branched  handle,  has 
been  found  at  the  lake  dwelling  of  Mcerigen,J  on  the  Lac  de 
Bienne.  In  this  case  also  the  loop  is  on  the  farther  side  of  the 
shaft. 

That  the  flanged  and  winged  celts  and  palstaves  were,  as  a  rule, 
destined  to  be  mounted  in  the  manner  of  hatchets  or  adzes,  and 
not  as  spuds  or  spear-heads,  is  to  some  extent  witnessed  by  the 
development  of  their  form ;  the  progressive  increase  in  the  size  of  the 
wings  and  flanges,  more  especially  about  the  middle  of  the  blade, 
appearing  to  be  intended  as  a  precaution  against  lateral  strains, 
such  as  the  blade  of  an  axe  undergoes,  rather  than  against  a  mere 
thrust,  such  as  that  to  which  the  head  of  a  spear  or  lance  is 
subject.  Of  course  the  stop-ridge  is  a  preservative  against  the 
blade  being  driven  back  into  its  handle,  in  whatever  way  it  is 
mounted.  But  the  flanges,  at  first  slight,  then  expanding  at  the 
middle  of  the  blade,  then  becoming  projecting  wings,  and  finally 
being  bent  over,  so  as  to  form  side  sockets  on  each  side  of  the 
blade,  seem  rather  the  result  of  successive  endeavours  to  steady  the 
blade  against  a  sideways  strain. 

This  development  can  best  be  traced  in  the  series  of  flat  celts, 
flanged  and  winged  celts,  and  palstaves,  discovered  in  the  South  of 
France. 

Even  the  long  narrow  palstaves,  which  have  so  much  the 
appearance  of  chisels,  seem  to  have  been  mounted  on  crooked 
shafts.  There  is  a  long  German  §  form  with  a  narrow  butt  above 
the  stop-ridge,  and  with  but  slight  side  flanges,  which  are  con- 

*  «  Allgemeine  Culturwissenschaft,"  pi.  i.  fig.  186,  p.  105. 

t  Strobel  in  Bull,  di  Palet.  Ital.,  Anno  i.  (1875),  p.  7,  Tav.  i. ;  Anno  4to  (1878),  p.  46 
Tav.  ii.  {  Keller,  "  7ter  Bericht,"  Taf.  xxiv.  17. 

§  See  Lindenschmit,  "A.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  i.,  Heft.  i.  Taf.  iv.  32. 


154 


METHODS    OF    HAFTING   CELTS. 


[CHAP.  vi. 


tinued  down  along  the  sides  of  the  blade  below  the  ridge,  that 
seems  much  more  like  a  chisel  than  a  hatchet.  The  usual 
length  of  this  form  is  about  6  inches,  and  the  width  at  the  edge 
about  1|  inches,  that  of  the  butt-end,  including  the  side 
flanches,  being  about  f  inch.  But  that  palstaves  of  this  kind 
were  mounted  as  hatchets  will  be  evident  from  an  inspection  of 
Fig.  185,  which  represents  a  specimen  in  my  own  collection, 

found  in  the  district  of  Earon, 
near  Brigue,  Valais,  Switzerland. 
It  is,  as  will  be  seen,  in  fact,  a 
socketed  celt,  but  with  the 
socket  at  right  angles  to  the 
axis  of  the  blade.  The  reason 
why  it  should  have  been  cast 
in  this  manner  is  probably  to 
be  found  in  the  fact  that  boughs 
of  trees  with  a  smaller  branch 
at  right  angles  to  them  are  not 
easily  met  with,  though  such 
boughs  are  best  adapted  for  con- 
version into  the  helves  of  this 
kind  of  hatchet.  Some  ingeni- 
ous bronze-founder  of  old  times 
conceived  the  idea  of  producing 
a  hatchet  which  did  not  require 
a  crooked  helve,  but  for  hafting 
which  any  ordinary  straight 
stick  would  serve ;  and  we  have 
here  his  new  form  of  axe-head. 
In  practice,  however,  it  was  pro- 
bably found  both  to  balance 
badly,  and  to  be  expensive  in 
metal,  and  the  design  appears 
not  to  have  spread,  as  up  to 
the  present  time  this  specimen  seems  to  be  unique.  The  most 
remarkable  features  in  it  have  still  to  be  noticed.  The  pattern 
from  which  it  was  cast  seems  to  have  been  a  palstave  already 
mounted  on  its  haft,  and  we  have  here  the  smooth  and  rounded 
end  of  the  bough,  with  the  smaller  side  branch  running  off  at 
right  angles,  reproduced  in  bronze.  Even  the  band  by  which  the 
blade  was  secured  in  the  cleft  part  of  the  handle  is  reproduced  as 


Fig.  185.— Earon,  Brig-ue. 


SOCKETED    CELTS   USED    AS    HATCHETS.  155 

a  spiral  moulding.  The  banding  which  extends  to  the  mouth 
of  the  socket  is  also  spiral,  and  probably  represents  a  binding 
round  the  original  wooden  handle  at  the  part  where,  from  expe- 
rience, it  was  found  most  liable  to  break.  The  straight  haft  of 
this  hatchet  was  secured  in  its  place  by  a  bronze  rivet  passing 
through  the  socket  from  side  to  side,  which  is  still  in  its  place, 
though  all  trace  of  the  wood  has  disappeared. 

With  this  singular  celt  was  found  a  small  dagger,  6|  inches 
long,  which  had  been  secured  to  its  hilt  by  four  rivets,  and  a 
penannular  bracelet  decorated  with  ring  ornaments.  It  is  remark- 
able how  well  the  discovery  of  this  form  of  celt  bears  out  the 
theoretical  suggestions  of  Sir  Joseph  Banks,*  Sir  Samuel  Meyrick,f 
Mr.  Dunoyer,^:  and  others,  including  Sir  W.  Wilde.  §  Indeed, 
Dr.  Richard  Richardson  ||  many  years  ago  advanced  the  same 
opinion  as  to  the  manner  in  which  such  celts  were  hafted. 

With  regard  to  the  usual  manner  of  mounting  those  of  the 
socketed  form  there  can  be  but  little  doubt,  as  in  some  few 
instances  the  original  handles  have  been  preserved  with  them. 


Fig.  186.— Edenderry.       J 


One  such,  found  in  the  bed  of  the  river  Boyne,  near  Eden- 
derry, King's  County,  has  been  figured  by  Wilde,H  whose  cut,  by 
the  kind  permission  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  is  here  repro- 
duced as  Fig.  186.  The  helve  is  only  13f  inches  long,  but 
seems  well  adapted  to  the  size  of  the  blade.  So  far  as  I  know 
this  is  the  only  instance  of  such  a  discovery  within  the  United 
Kingdom. 

In  Fig.  187,  however,  is  shown  an  Italian  socketed  celt  of 
a  common  form,  with  the  original  handle  still  attached.  This 
specimen  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was  found  about  the  year 
1872  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Chiusi,  Tuscany.  With  it  were 
another,  also  retaining  its  handle,  a  large  fibula  of  silver,  a  scara- 
ba3us,  and  many  small  square  plates  of  bronze,  each  having  a  fylfot 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  102,  pi.  viii.  6. 

t  "Ancient  Armour,"  by  Skelton,  vol.  i.  pi.  xlvii. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  4.  §  "  Catal.  Mas.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  367. 

||  Leland's  Itin.,  Heame's  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  145.  H  P.  370,  fig.  257. 


156 


METHODS   OF    HAFTING    CELTS 


[CHAP.  vi. 


cross  upon  it,  probably  the  ornaments  of  a  girdle.  All  these 
objects  had  been  buried  in  an  urn,  which  was  covered  by  a  slab  of 
stone,  and  most  of  them  are  to  be  seen  in  the  Etruscan  Museum  at 
Florence.  With  the  exception  of  a  fracture  not  far  from  the  angle, 
the  handle  of  my  specimen  is  perfect.  The  preservation  is  due  to 
its  having  been  entirely  coated  with  thin  plates  of  bronze,  the  sides 
of  which  overlap,  and  have  been  secured  round  the  handle  by 


Fig.  187.— Chiusi. 


round-headed  nails  about  f  inch  apart.  This  plating  is  turned 
over  square  at  the  end  of  the  handle,  where  there  is  a  little  pro- 
jecting bronze  eye,  through  which  a  ring  may  have  passed,  so  as  to 
serve  for  its  suspension.  At  the  sides  above  the  celt  there  are 
some  larger  round-headed  nails,  or  possibly  rivets;  and  the  end  of 
the  branch  which  goes  into  the  socket  appears  to  be  secured  by  a 
rivet,  which  passes  through  from  face  to  face.  At  the  end  of  the 
handle  itself,  above  the  celt,  is  a  nearly  circular  flat  bronze  plate, 


AS   SEEN    AT    HALLSTATT.  157 

with  a  round-headed  nail  in  the  middle  to  attach  it  to  the  wood. 
The  fracture  exposes  the  wood  inside  the  plates,  which  has  been 
preserved  by  the  salts,  or  oxide,  of  copper.  It  has  been  thought 
to  be  oak.  On  the  blade  of  the  celt  are  some  flakes  of  oxide  of 
iron,  as  if  it  had  lain  in  contact  with  some  articles  made  of  that 
metal.  Indeed,  from  the  form,  as  well  as  from  the  objects  found 
with  it,  the  presumption  is  that  this  instrument  belongs  to  quite 
the  end  of  the  Bronze  Age  of  Italy,  or  to  the  transitional  period 
between  bronze  and  iron. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  mention  that  celts  of  iron  of  the  flat 
form,  with  projections  at  the  sides  like  Fig.  45  ;  of  the  palstave 
kind,  with  the  semicircular  side  sockets ;  and  of  the  socketed  form, 
have  been  found  in  the  cemetery  at  Hallstatt,  in  Austria,  the 
researches  in  which  of  Herr  Ramsauer  have  been  described  by 
Baron  Von  Sacken.*  These  discoveries  seem  to  show  that  all  three 
varieties  were  still  in  use  at  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period.  In 
the  same  cemetery  celts  of  the  two  last-mentioned  forms  were 
found  in  bronze,  and  palstaves  occurred  with  the  wings  formed  of 
bronze  and  the  blade  of  iron. 

In  1866  I  exhumed  from  this  cemetery  with  my  own  hands, 
when  in  company  with  Sir  John  Lubbock,  a  socketed  celt  of  iron, 
with  a  portion  of  the  haft  still  in  it.  The  celt  is  attached  to  a 
branch  of  the  main  handle,  which  projects  at  an  angle  of  about 
80°.  This  has  been  split  off  from  the  handle,  only  a  small  part 
of  which  remains  attached  ;  and  it  is  this  portion  only  of  the 
wood  which  has  been  preserved  by  the  infiltration  of  some  salts 
of  iron,  while  the  rest,  which  was  detached  from  contact  with 
metal,  has  disappeared.  The  wood  of  which  the  handle  was 
made  appears  to  be  fir.  On  an  iron  palstave  from  the  same  spot 
it  seems  to  be  oak.  On  two  bronze  palstaves  from  France  in 
my  own  collection,  one  from  Amiens  and  the  other  from  the 
Seine,  at  Paris,  the  portions  of  wood  which  still  remain  attached 
to  the  blades  appear  also  to  be  oak. 

In  the  Hallstatt  specimen  the  inclination  of  the  blade  seems  to 
have  been  towards  the  hand,  and  the  part  of  the  handle  beyond 
the  branch  which  enters  the  socket  presents  some  appearance  of 
having  been  bound  with  an  iron  ferrule,  probably  with  the  view  of 
preventing  it  from  splitting.  The  projection  is  somewhat  longer 
proportionally  than  that  in  Fig.  185,  and  the  end  appears  to  have 
been  truncated,  and  not  rounded. 

*  «  Grabfeld  von  Hallst.,"  p.  38. 


158  METHODS   OF    HAFTING    CELTS  [CHAP.  VI. 

There  have  been  in  this  country  a  few  instances  of  the  dis- 
covery of  bronze  rings  in  company  with  palstaves  and  socketed  celts, 
and  these  rings  may  possibly  have  served  a  similar  purpose,  though 
it  must  be  confessed  that  such  an  use  is  purely  conjectural.    That 
shown  in  Fig.  188  was  found  in  company  with  a  bronze  palstave 
without  a  loop,  but  much  like  Fig.  74,  at  Win  wick,*  near  Warring- 
ton,  Lancashire,  and  was  kindly  lent  me  by  Dr. 
O       James  Kendrick,  who  in  1858t  suggested  that 
it    was  a   "  sort  of  ferrule  to   put  round  the 
handle  of  the  palstave  to  prevent  the  wood  from 
splitting   when    the    instrument    was    struck." 
The  ornament  on  the  ring,  somewhat  like  the 
"  broad  arrow  "  of  modern  times,  is  of  much  the 
same  character  as  the  shield-like  pattern  below 
the  stop-ridge  of  some  palstaves.     In  the  British  Museum  is  a 
stone  mould  from  Northumberland  for  flat  rings,  3  inches  in  dia- 
meter, and  for  flat  celts  ;    but  such  rings  probably  served  some 
other  purpose. 

Another  bronze  ring,  1^  inches  in  diameter,  was  found  with  a 
socketed  celt  in  the  Thames,  +  opposite  Somerset  House,  but  here 
the  actual  association  of  the  two  is  doubtful. 

I  have  already  expressed  a  doubt  whether  the  celt  from  Tadcaster, 
Yorkshire,  and  now  in  the  British  Museum,  had,  when  found,  the 
bronze  ring  with  a  jet  bead  upon  it  passing  through  the  loop. 
The  ring  itself  is  made  not  of  one  continuous  piece  of  metal, 
but  of  stout  wire,  with  the  ends  abutting  against  each  other, 
and  nothing  would  be  easier  for  the  workman  who  found  the 
three  objects  than  to  pass  the  ring  through  the  loop  of  the 
celt  and  the  hole  of  the  bead.  I  have  myself  received  from 
Hungary  two  socketed  celts,  each  having  imperfect  penannular 
bracelets  passed  through  the  loop  in  the  same  manner,  though  they 
certainly  had  no  original  connection  with  the  celts.  It  is,  how- 
ever, but  right  to  mention  that  in  the  British  Museum  is  the 
upper  part  of  a  celt  with  an  octagonal  neck,  found  with  other 
objects  near  Kensington,  on  the  loop  of  which  is  a  small  ring,  barely 
large  enough  to  encircle  the  loop.  Of  what  service  this  could 
have  been  it  is  difficult  to  imagine. 

If  the  association  of  the  larger  rings  and  the  celts  must  be 
given  up,  it  is  needless  to  cite  the  opinions  which  have  been  held 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  pi.  xxv.  p.  236 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  159. 
t  A.  A.  J.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  269.  j  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  161. 


IN   SOME   INSTANCES   AS   ADZES.  159 

as  to  the  use  of  the  one  in  connection  with  the  other.  Some 
references  are  given  in  the  note.* 

The  early  Iron  Age  of  Denmark  is  no  doubt  considerably  later 
in  date  than  that  of  Hallstatt,  but  in  several  of  the  discoveries  of 
objects  of  that  period  in  Denmark  socketed  celts  of  iron  have 
been  found  still  attached  to  their  helves.  In  the  Nydam  find, 
described  by  Mr.  Conrad  Engelhardt,  the  majority  of  the  axes  were 
of  the  ordinary  form,  with  eyes  for  the  shafts ;  but  there  were 
some  also  of  the  form  of  the  socketed  celt,  though  without  any 
loops.  These  were  mounted  as  axes,  and  not  as  adzes,  on  crooked 
handles  about  1 7  inches  long.  The  helves  of  axes  of  the  ordinary 
form  were  from  23  to  32  inches  in  length.  In  the  Viinose  find  + 
there  were  several  of  these  iron  celts,  one  of  which  was  thought 
to  have  been  mounted  on  a  crooked  handle,  but  the  others  appear 
to  have  been  mounted  as  chisels. 

The  palstaves  with  the  edges  transverse  to  the  septum  between 
the  side  flanges  seem  to  have  been  mounted  in  precisely  the  same 
manner  as  those  of  the  ordinary  form,  except  that  when  attached 
to  their  handles  they  formed  adzes,  and  not  axes.  It  has  been 
suggested  §  that  the  palstaves  of  the  ordinary  form  may  also  have 
been  mounted  as  adzes,  and  probably  this  was  so  in  some  excep- 
tional cases.  Mention  has  already  been  made  of  some  Italian 
helves  with  transverse  notches  for  the  reception  of  the  blade. 
Some  of  the  flat  celts  may  have  also  been  mounted  as  adzes  by 
binding  them  against  the  shorter  end  of  an  L~snaPe(l  handle,  in 
the  same  manner  as  the  Egyptians  fixed  their  adze  blades. 

In  some  palstaves,  but  more  especially  in  those  of  the  South 
of  Europe,  there  is  at  the  butt-end  of  the  blade  a  kind  of  dove- 
tailed notch,  which  appears  to  have  been  formed  by  hammering 
over  a  part  of  the  jets  or  runners  of  the  original  castings,  which 
were  left  projecting  a  short  distance  instead  of  being  broken  off 
short  at  the  blade.  Whether  the  hammering  over  was  for  the 
purpose  of  rounding  the  angles  or  for  that  of  forming  this  dove- 
tailed notch  is  somewhat  uncertain ;  it  is,  however,  possible  that 
one  or  more  pins  or  rivets  may  have  been  driven  through  the 
handle,  so  as  to  catch  the  dovetails  and  retain  the  blade  in  its 
place.  It  is  not  often  the  case  that  this  portion  of  the  blade  is  so 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  362;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  6  ;  Klemm,  "  AUg.  Kult.  gesch.," 
p.  107. 

t  "  Nydam  Mosefund,"  1859—1863.     Copenhagen,  1865. 


t  "  Vimose  Fundet"  af  C.  Engelhardt,  1869,  p.  29. 
9  Westropp  in  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  335. 


160  METHODS   OF    HAFTING    CELTS.  [CHAP.  VI. 

long  that  it  would  have  gone  through  the  handle  and  have  allowed 
of  a  pin  beyond  it,  as  suggested  by  Mr.  Dunoyer  *  in  the  case  of 
a  long  palstave,  with  a  rivet-hole  near  the  butt-end  of  the  blade. 
A  palstave,  found  in  a  tomb  in  the  department  of  Loir  et  Cher,t 
by  my  friend  the  late  Abbs'  Bourgeois,  is  provided  with  a  rivet- 
hole  near  the  top,  countersunk  on  either  side  so  as  to  guide  a 
pin  into  the  place  intended  for  it ;  and  it  seems  probable,  as  the 
Abbe"  suggests,  that  this  was  connected  with  the  securing  of  the 
blade,  which  is  destitute  of  a  loop,  to  the  helve.  Of  six  thin  flat 
bronze  celts,  7  or  8  inches  long,  from  the  Island  of  Thermia,+  or 
Cythnos,  in  the  Greek  Archipelago,  which  are  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  three  that  are  broad  are  provided  with  square  or 
lozenge-shaped  holes  towards  the  upper  end  of  the  blade,  and 
three  that  are  narrower  are  without.  A  flanged  celt  from  Italy,  § 
6  inches  long,  has  a  circular  hole  in  the  same  position,  which 
may  have  received  a  pin.  Some  contrivance  for  keeping  blades 
of  smooth  bronze  fast  in  their  handles  must  have  been  neces- 
sary or  desirable  from  the  earliest  times.  With  stone  celts  we 
often  find  that  the  butt-end  destined  to  be  let  into  the  wooden 
or  horn  socket  was  purposely  roughened.  With  bronze,  how- 
ever, such  a  process  does  not  seem  to  have  been  adopted  to 
any  extent ;  and  probably  with  blades  of  bronze,  so  much  less 
tapering  than  those  of  stone,  the  difficulty  of  keeping  them  in 
place  was  surmounted  by  attaching  them  with  some  sort  of 
resinous  or  pitchy  cement.  A  safe  remedy  against  slipping  out 
was  no  doubt  found  in  the  addition  of  the  ring  or  loop  to  the 
side,  which  there  can  be  but  little  doubt  served  for  a  cord  to  pass 
through,  so  as  to  hold  the  blade  back  to  the  handle.  In  a  socketed 
celt,  5  i  inches  long,  found  in  the  Seine,  at  Paris,  and  now  in  my 
own  collection,  not  only  is  the  wood  preserved  in  the  socket  by 
saturation  with  some  salt  of  copper,  but  within  the  upper  part  of 
the  loop  there  are  distinct  traces  of  a  cord  which  was  apparently 
formed  of  vegetable  fibre.  The  Irish  palstave,  Fig.  105,  with  the 
curved  projection  instead  of  the  usual  loop,  seems  to  show  that  it  was 
only  against  the  upper  part  of  the  loop  that  the  strain  came.  No 
doubt,  however,  there  was  more  strength  in  the  loop  attached  to 
the  blade  at  both  ends  than  in  the  mere  neb  or  projection.  Some 
Italian  socketed  celts  have  similar  projecting  nebs,  one  on  either 
side.  In  the  case  of  the  palstaves  and  celts  with  two  loops,  it 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  4,  fig.  B.  f  Revue  Arch.,  vol.  xxix.  p.  73,  pi.  iii.  2. 

%  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  436.       §  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  100. 


NO    PERFORATED    BRONZE    AXE-HEADS   IN    BRITAIN.  161 

seems  probable  that  the  handle  must  have  been  somewhat  pro- 
longed beyond  the  side  branch,  which  received  the  palstave  or 
went  into  the  socket  of  the  celt. 

It  has  been  stated  that  some  of  the  Spanish  palstaves*  with  two 
loops  were,  when  first  discovered,  attached  to  a  straight  handle  of 
wood.  But  this  opinion  may  have  been  formed  from  the  grain  of 
the  wood  impressed  on  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  running  along 
and  not  across  it.  In  the  first  account  f  given  of  the  discovery, 
these  palstaves  were  regarded  as  having  been  used  for  picking  out 
the  strata  of  coal,  and  one  of  them  is  said  to  have  been  firmly 
attached  to  a  wooden  handle  by  means  of  thongs  interlaced  and 
held  by  notches  in  the  wood.  This  handle  was  described  as 
having  been  straight,  so  that  the  instrument  was  fitted  to  be 
used  as  a  crowbar  and  not  as  a  hatchet.  But  inasmuch  as  the 
groove  for  the  handle  is  only  2j  inches  long  and  ^  inch  wide, 
while  the  length  of  the  blade  projecting  beyond  the  handle  is 
nearly  5  inches,  it  is  almost  impossible  for  it  to  have  served  in 
this  manner. 

Axe-heads  of  bronze  of  the  modern  form  with  an  eye  through 
them  to  receive  a  straight  helve  have  not  been  found  in  this 
country,  though,  as  already  observed,  they  are  not  uncommon  in 
Hungary,  Southern  Germany,  and  Italy.  That  the  form  was  already 
known  in  Greece  in  the  Homeric  Age  is  evident  from  the  feat  of 
skill  in  shooting  an  arrow  through  the  shaft  holes  of  a  number  of 
axe-heads,  arranged  in  a  row,  recorded  in  the  Odyssey.*  I  have 
in  my  collection  a  fine  double-edged  axe,  or  TreXeKw,  from  Greece, 
81  inches  in  length,  with  a  round  shaft-hole  •£  inch  in  diameter. 
I  have  also  two  from  Salamis. 

Looking  at  the  widespread  distribution  of  perforated  stone  im- 
plements, especially  battle-axes,  throughout  Europe,  it  seems 
strange  that  so  few  bronze  weapons  of  the  same  class  should  be 
found.  Possibly,  however,  these  stone  weapons  may  have  re- 
mained in  use  even  until  the  latter  part  of  the  Bronze  Period,  as 
they  certainly  did  through  the  earlier  part  of  it.  In  this  country 
it  seems  doubtful  whether  any  of  the  perforated  battle-axes  of  stone 
belong  to  a  time  when  bronze  was  absolutely  unknown,  as  bronze 
knife-daggers,  like  Fig.  279,  have  so  often  been  found  asso- 
ciated with  them  in  interments.  Hungary  is  the  country  in 
which  the  perforated  bronze  battle-axes  seem  to  have  arrived  at 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  369.  t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  69. 

I  Lib.  xix.  v.  573.     See  also  Lib.  v.  v.  235. 

M 


162  METHODS   OF    HAFTING    CELTS  [CHAP.  VI. 

their  fullest  development,  many  of  them  being  of  graceful  form 
and  beautiful  workmanship.  The  perforated  copper  implements 
of  that  country  were  probably  used  for  agricultural  purposes,  and 
I  see  no  reason  for  assigning  them  to  so  early  a  date  as  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Bronze  Period  of  Hungary.  They  may,  indeed, 
belong  to  a  much  later  period.  It  is  hard  to  account  for  this 
absence  of  perforated  axes  of  bronze  in  Britain,  but  various  causes 
seem  to  have  conduced  to  render  their  introduction  difficult. 
When  first  bronze  came  into  use  it  must  have  been  extremely 
scarce  and  valuable  ;  and  to  cast  an  axe-head  in  bronze,  like  one 
of  the  perforated  axe-hammers  of  stone,  would  have  required  not 
only  a  considerably  greater  amount  of  the  then  precious  metal  than 
was  required  for  a  flat  hatchet-head,  but  would  also  have  involved 
a  far  higher  skill  in  the  art  of  casting.  Moreover,  the  flat  form  of 
these  simple  blades  rendered  them  well  adapted  for  being  readily 
drawn  out  to  a  sharp  cutting  edge,  and  when  once  they  had  come 
into  general  use  they  wouldnot  have  been  readily  superseded  by  those 
of  another  form,  hafted  in  a  different  method,  even  were  that  method 
more  simple.  If  the  bronze  celts  were  mainly  in  use  for  peaceful 
industries,  while  the  warlike  battle-axes  were  made  of  stone,  the 
progressive  modifications  in  the  shape  of  the  former  would  be  less 
likely  to  be  affected  by  the  characteristics  of  the  latter.  It  must 
also  be  remembered  that  in  France,*  which  then  as  now  set  the 
fashion  to  Britain,  perforated  axe-heads  of  stone  were  very  seldom 
used,  and  those  of  bronze  were  in  the  north  of  the  country 
unknown. 

But,  to  return  to  the  celts  of  the  British  Islands,  there  can,  I 
think,  be  but  little  doubt  that  the  loop  is,  as  already  described, 
connected  with  the  method  of  mounting  these  instruments  on 
their  hafts  j  and  is  not  intended  for  the  attachment  of  a  cord,  by 
which  they  might  be  withdrawn  and  recovered  after  they  had 
been  thrown  at  the  enemy.  Like  the  American  tomahawks,  they 
may,  no  doubt,  have  occasionally  been  used  as  "  missile  hatchets," 
the  "  missiles  secures "  of  Sidonius  ;  t  but  the  days  of  young 
Sigimer,  whose  followers  were  provided  with  these  weapons,  are 
many  centuries  more  recent  than  those  to  which  the  bronze  celts 
must  be  referred. 

In  the  same  manner,  any  idea  of  the  loops  having  merely  served 

*  While  speaking  of  French  celts,  I  may  refer  to  a  short  Paper  on  the  method  in 
which  they  were  hafted,  written  by  the  late  M.  PenguiUy-l'Haridon.— Rev.  Arch., 
2nd  S.  vol.  iv.  p.  329. 

t  Ep.  20,  lib.  4.     See  Arch.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  492. 


AS    CHISELS. 


163 


for  hanging  these  instruments  at  the  girdle  may  be  at  once  dis- 
carded. For  such  a  purpose  the  projection  which  we  find  sub- 
stituted for  the  loop  would  be  useless,  and  the  presence  of  two 
loops  would  be  superfluous. 

On  the  whole,  we  may  conclude  that  the  majority  of  these 
instruments  were  mounted  for  use,  somewhat  in  the  manner 
described,  so  as  to  serve  as  axes  or  adzes.  A  smaller  proportion 
of  them  may,  however,  not  improbably  have 
been  provided  with  short  straight  handles,  to 
serve  as  chisels,  especially  the  socketed  celts 
of  small  size  and  without  loops.  This  is  the 
more  probable  as  several  socketed  instruments 
closely  resembling  them  in  character  cannot  be 
regarded  as  other  than  chisels  and  gouges.  No 
example,  however,  of  a  socketed  celt  provided 
with  a  handle  of  this  kind  has  as  yet  been 
found.  The  little  instrument  of  brass  fixed 
into  a  handle  made  of  stag's  horn,  which 
was  found  in  a  cist  in  a  barrow  at  Everley,* 
Wilts,  by  Sir  R.  Colt  Hoare,  has  more  the 
appearance  of  being  a  tanged  chisel,  such  as 
will  subsequently  be  described,  than  a  flat  celt. 
It  is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  189,  which  I  have 
copied  from  Sir  R.  C.  Hoare's  plate.  There 
were  no  bones  or  ashes  found  in  the  cist,  but 
several  pointed  instruments,  and  what  appears 
to  be  a  kind  of  long,  flat  bead  of  bone,  as  well 
as  two  whetstones  of  freestone,  and  a  hone  of 
a  blueish  colour  had  been  deposited  with  it. 

Professor  Worsaae  t  has  published  an  en- 
graving of  a  narrow  Danish  palstave,  which 
was  found  in  a  hill  in  Jutland  fastened  to  its 
handle  by  three  rings  of  leather.  This  handle 
was  straight,  but  unlike  that  from  Store  Hedin- 
age,  which  was  an  ell  and  a  quarter  long,  was 
not  more  than  about  8  inches  in  length.  In 
some  other  instances,  he  says,  the  blade  has  Kg.  m— Everiey.  * 
been  fastened  to  the  handle  by  nails  or  rivets. 

I  have  already  mentioned  that  some  of  the  socketed  celts  of 
iron  belonging  to  the  early  Iron  Age  of  Denmark  have  been  found 

*  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  182,  pi.  xxi.  t  "  Prim.  Ant.  of  Denmark,"  p.  26. 

M  2 


164  METHODS   OF    HAFTING    CELTS.  [CHAP.  VI. 

mounted  as  chisels.  A  good  example  of  one  thus  hafted  has 
been  figured  by  Engelhardt.*  The  part  of  the  handle  which  goes 
into  the  socket  is  tapered  to  fit  it.  Above  this  the  handle  ex- 
pands with  a  shoulder  projecting  somewhat  beyond  the  outside  of 
the  celt.  It  continues  of  this  size  for  about  Ij  inches,  and  is 
then  again  reduced  to  the  same  size  as  the  mouth  of  the  celt. 
The  whole  of  the  handle  beyond  the  metal  is  about  4  inches 
in  length. 

Having  said  thus  much  with  regard  to  the  early  iron  chisels,  it 
will,  however,  now  be  well  to  proceed  to  the  consideration  of 
those  formed  of  bronze,  and  of  the  other  bronze  tools  found  in 
this  country. 

*  "  Vimose  Mosefundet,"  p.  28. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND    OTHER   TOOLS. 

ALTHOUGH,  doubtless,  many  if  not  most  of  the  instruments  of 
different  forms,  described  in  the  preceding  chapters,  were  used  as 
tools,  and  not  as  weapons,  yet  in  some  cases,  especially  where  they 
have  been  found  in  graves,  it  is  more  probable  that  they  formed 
part  of  the  equipment  of  a  warrior  than  of  an  artificer.  With 
regard  to  the  various  forms  of  which  I  intend  to  treat  in  the  pre- 
sent chapter,  there  can  hardly  exist  a  doubt  that  they  should  be 
regarded  as  tools,  and  not  as  weapons.  Already  in  the  Neolithic 
Period  we  find  many  of  these  forms  of  tools,  such  as  chisels  and 
gouges,  developed ;  and  so  far  as  hammers  are  concerned,  it  seems 
probable  that  for  many  purposes  a  stone  held  in  the  hand  may 
have  served  during  the  Bronze  Period  as  a  hammer  or  mallet,  just 
as  it  often  does  now  in  the  age  of  steel  and  steam.  I  have  else- 
where* mentioned  a  fact  communicated  to  me  by  the  late  Mr.  David 
Forbes,  F.R.S.,  that  in  Peru  and  Bolivia  the  masons,  skilful  in 
working  hard  stone  with  steel  chisels,  make  use  of  no  other  mallet 
or  hammer  than  a  stone  pebble  held  in  the  hand. 

The  simplest  form  of  chisel  is  of  course  a  short  bar  of  metal 
brought  to  an  edge  at  one  end  and  left  blunt  at  the  other  where 
it  receives  the  blows  of  the  hammer  or  mallet.  Such  at  the 
present  day  are  the  ordinary  chisels  of  the  stone-mason,  and  the 
"  cold  chisel  "  of  the  engineer. 

Most  of  the  Scandinavian  chisels  of  flint  are  of  nearly  the  same 
form  as  the  simplest  metal  chisels,  being  square  in  section  in  the 
upper  part  and  gradually  tapering  to  an  edge  at  the  lower  end. 
Bronze  chisels  of  this  form  are,  however,  but  rarely  met  with  in 
any  part  of  Europe.  One  such,  however,  was  found  at  Plymstock,t 

*  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  207. 

t  See  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346.     I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S. 
for  the  use  of  this  cut. 


166 


CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 


near  Oreston,  Devonshire,  in  company  with  sixteen  flanged  celts 
like  Figs.  9  and  10,  three  daggers,  and  a  tanged  spear-head,  en- 
graved as  Fig.  327.  It  is  shown  in  Fig.  190.  Its  length  is  4 
inches,  and  the  cutting  edge  is  rather  more  than  |  inch  in  width. 
The  late  Mr.  Albert  Way,  who  describes  this  specimen  in  the 
ArchceologicalJournal,  regarded  it  as  unique  in  England;  and  the 
form,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  has  not  again  been  found  in  this 
country.  It  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

I  have  a  large  chisel  of  the  same  type,  but  apparently  formed  of  copper, 
which,  was  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Pressburg,  Hungary.  It  is 

7£  inches  long,  about  -J  inch 
square  in  the  middle,  and 
expands  in  width  at  the  edge, 
which  is  lunate.  Others  of 
the  same  form,  4£  inches  and 
5f  inches  long,  also  from 

J  Hungary,  are  in  the  Zurich 

Museum.  Such  chisels  have 
also  been  found  in  the  Swiss 
Lake-dwellings. 
A  long  chisel,  formed  from 
a  plain  square  bar  drawn  to 
an  edge,  was  found  by  Dr. 
Schliemann*  in  his  excava- 
tions at  Hissarlik. 
Bronze  chisels  of  the  same 
form  were  also  in  use  among 
the  ancient  Egyptians. 
A  smaller  chisel,  conical  at 
the  butt  end  and  possibly 
intended  for  insertion  into  a 
handle,  is  shown  in  Fig.  191. 
The  original  is  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.S.,  and  was  found  with 
numerous  other  bronze  antiquities  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Durham, 
already  so  often  mentioned.  One  rather  larger,  about  3  inches  long  and 
\  inch  broad,  probably  found  in  one  of  the  barrows  at  Lakef  or  Durn- 
ford,  is  in  the  collection  of  the  Rev.  E.  Duke,  of  Lake  House,  near  Salis- 
bury. It  may  possibly  have  been  a  large  awl. 

An  Aztec  J  chisel  of  nearly  the  same  form  as  Fig.  191,  and  about  4£ 
inches  long,  contains  97 -87  copper  and  2-13  of  tin.  Another  from  Lima 
contains  94  copper  and  6  of  tin. 

The  small  bronze  chisel  from  Scotland,  shown  in  Fig.  192,  exhibits  a 
somewhat  different  type ;  the  blade  tapering  evenly  away  from  the  edge. 
The  point  which  was  intended  to  go  into  the  handle  appears  to  have  been 
"  drawn  down"  a  little  by  hammering,  which  has  produced  slight  flanges 

*  "Troy  and  its  Remains,"  p.  332.  f  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  467. 

J  "  Anales  del  Museo  de  Mexico,"  vol.  i.  p.  117. 


Fig.  190. 
Plymstock.    | 


Fig.  191. 
Heathery  Burn. 


Fig.  192. 
Glenluce. 


TAGGED    CHISELS. 


167 


at  the  sides.  The  edge  has  also  been  hammered.  The  original  was  kindly 
lent  me  by  the  Eev.  George  Wilson,  of  Glenluce,  Wigtonshire,  and  was 
found,  with  a  conical  button  and  a  flat  plate  of  cannel-coal  or  jet,  on  the 
Sandhills  of  Low  Torrs,  near  Glenluce.  Numerous  arrow-heads  and 
flakes  of  flint  have  also  been  found  among  the  sands  at  the  same  place. 

A  flat  chisel  (4£  inches)  like  Fig.  192,  but  rather  broader  at  the  edge, 
which  is  somewhat  oblique,  was  found  with  two  flat  sickles  on  Sparkford 
Hill,*  Somersetshire. 

There  were  some  small  chisels  of  this  class  in  the  Larnaud  hoard  t 
(Jura). 

Others  have  been  found  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings. J 

Two  shorter  edged  tools,  found  at  Ebnall,§  Salop,  which  have  been 
described  as  chisels  or  hammers,  seem  rather  to  have  been  punches,  and 
will  be  mentioned  subsequently. 

As  chisels  were  probably  used  in  ancient  times,  as  at  present,  not 
only  in  conjunction  with  a  mallet,  but  also  in  the  hand  alone  with 
pressure  as  paring-tools,  it  would  have  been  found 
convenient  to  attach  them  to  wooden  or  horn 
handles.  Accordingly  we  find  them  both  provided 
with  a  tang  or  shank  for  driving  into  a  wooden 
handle,  like  the  majority  of  modern  chisels,  and 
also,  though  more  rarely,  with  a  socket  for  the 
reception  of  a  handle,  like  the  heavy  mortising 
chisels  of  the  present  day.  Chisels  of  the  tanged 
variety  vary  considerably  in  size  and  strength,  and 
in  the  relative  width  of  the  blade  to  the  length. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  192*  is  from  the  great  hoard 
discovered  at  Carlton  Eode,||  Norfolk,  already  men- 
tioned, and  is  preserved  in  the  Norwich  Museum.  The 
marks  of  the  joint  of  the  mould  are  still  visible  on  the 
tang.  It  was  found  with  numerous  celts  and  gouges, 
a  hammer,  and  at  least  one  socketed  chisel.  Another 
tanged  chisel  of  nearly  the  same  form  and  dimensions  is 
also  in  the  Norwich  Museum.  It  formed  part  of  the  Woodward  Collec- 
tion, and  was  probably  found  in  Norfolk. 

A  chisel  much  more  expanded  at  the  edge,  and  also  of  lighter  make, 
was  found  at  Wallingford,  Berks,  in  company  with  a  double-edged  knife 
or  razor,  and  a  socketed  celt,  gouge,  and  knife,  of  which  notices  are  given 
in  other  parts  of  this  book.  It  is  engraved  as  Fig.  193,  and  is  in  my  own 
collection,  as  is  also  the  original  of  Fig.  1 94.  This  formed  part  of  the  hoard 
discovered  in  Reach  Fen,  Cambridge,  and  was  the  only  one  of  the  kind 
there  found.  A  socketed  chisel-like  celt  from  the  same  hoard  has  been 
already  described  and  figured  at  page  133,  Fig.  159. 

*  Somerset  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Proc.,  1856—7,  vol.  vii.  p.  27. 

t  Chantre,  "  Album,"  pi.  xliii.  J  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  ix.  34,  35. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  167 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  66. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  80 ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  59. 


168 


CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 


Tanged  chisels  have  also  occurred  in  various  other  hoards  of  bronze 
antiquities.  Some  were  found  with  numerous  celts  and  other  tools  at 
Westow,*  on  the  Derwent,  Yorkshire,  which  from  their  curved  edges  and 
general  character  the  late  Mr.  James  Yates  regarded  as  the  oyu'Aa  xaPT°- 
TO/XOS,  or  chisel  for  cutting  paper,  mentioned  by  Philoxenus,  and  as  the 
currier's  chisel,  o-Kuroro/*os,  mentioned  by  Julius  Pollux.  If  I  were  to  off er 
an  opinion  it  would  be  that  any  cutting  tool  of  the  Bronze  Period  in 
Britain  was  more  likely  to  have  been  used  for  cutting  leather  than  paper, 
the  latter  commodity  being,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  scarce  in  Britain  at  that 
time ;  and,  moreover,  that  chisels  are  generally  used  for  cutting  wood  and 
not  leather. 

In  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  are  two  of  these  tanged 
chisels  from  Westow,  about  4  J  inches  long  and  1£  inch  broad  at  the  edge.  A 
small  part  of  the  blade  below  the  round  collar  is  cylindrical.  In  the  British 
Museum  is  a  small  specimen  of  this  kind  (3£  inches)  from  the  Thames. 


Fig.  193.-Wallingfoid.      \ 


Fig.  194.    Reach  Fen. 


Fig.  195,-Thixendale. 


In  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool  is  a  specimen,  4  inches  long  and 
f  inch  broad  at  the  edge,  found  near  Canterbury  in  1761.  The  collar  is 
Hat  above  and  almost  hemispherical  below.  Another,  with  part  of  the 
tang  broken  off,  and  the  blade  2£  inches  long  and  1£  inch  wide,  was 
found  in  the  Kirkhead  Cave,  Ulverstone,  Lancashire,  and  was  described 
to  me  by  Mr.  H.  Ecroyd  Smith. 

Another,  rather  like  Fig.  199,  but  broken  at  the  angles,  was  found 
with  spear-heads  and  a  socketed  celt  at  Ty  Mawr,f  Anglesea.  What 
appears  to  be  a  chisel  of  this  kind  (4f  inches  long)  was  found  near 
Biggen  Grange,  J  Derbyshire,  and  is  in  the,  Bateman  Collection.  Another 
was  found  at  Porkington,§  Shropshire. 

A  fragment  of  a  tanged  chisel  was  found  with  a  large  hoard  of  broad 
spear-heads,  &c.,  at  Broad  ward,  Shropshire. 

A  remarkably  small  specimen  from  Thixendale,  in  the  East  Eiding 
of  Yorkshire,  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  who  has  kindly 
allowed  me  to  engrave  it  as  Fig.  195.  The  stop,  instead  of  being  as  usual 


*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  381,  408;  Arch.  Assoc.  Jonrn.,  vol.  iii.  p.  58. 
t  Arch.  Jount.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  253. 

J  Bateman's  "  Catalogue,"  p.  74,  No.  8 ;  "  Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  8. 
§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  195. 


CHISELS    WITH   LUGS   AT   THE    SIDES. 


169 


a  circular  collar,  consists  of  a  bead  on  each  face,  so  that  in  the  side  view 
it  appears  as  if  an  oval  pin  traversed  the  blade. 

Nearly  similar  side-stops  are  to  be  observed  in  the  chisel  represented 
in  Fig.  196,  which  was  found  with  two  others  (3f  inches  and  4£  inches) 
in  a  hoard  of  bronze  antiquities  at  Yattendon,*  Berks,  of  which  I  have 
given  an  account  elsewhere.  With  the  chisels  were  instruments  of  the 
following  forms,  some  in  a  fragmentary  condition :  flat  celts,  palstaves, 
socketed  celts,  gouges,  socketed  and  tanged  knives,  swords,  scabbard 


Fig.  196.— Yattendon. 


Fig.  197.— Broxton. 


ends,  spear-heads,  and  flat,  conical,  and  annular  pieces  of  bronze.     The 
other  two  chisels  from  this  hoard  were  more  like  Fig.  194. 

A  very  large  example  of  a  chisel  of  this  kind  is  shown  in  Fig.  197,  the 
original  of  which  was  kindly  lent  me  by  Sir  Philip  de  M.  Grey  Egerton, 
F.E.S.  It  was  found  in  company  with  two  looped  palstaves  and  a  spear- 
head near  Broxton,  Cheshire,  about  twelve  miles  south  of  Chester. 

An  instrument  of  somewhat  the  same  character,  from  Farley  Heath, 
has  already  been  described  at  p.  69. 

A  tanged  chisel,  5  inches  long,  and  without  any  stops  or  collar,  was 
found  with  other  objects  at  Burgesses'  Meadow,  Oxford,  in  1830,  and  is 
now  in  the  Ashmolean  Museum. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  480. 


170  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 

Tliis  form  of  instrument  occurs  but  rarely  in  Scotland ;  but 
what  appears  to  be  a  chisel  of  this  kind  is  engraved  by  Wilson.* 
His  figure  is,  however,  a  mere  diagram,  without  any  scale  attached, 
and  the  instrument  is  described  as  an  axe  blade  with  a  cross  limb, 
or  as  a  "  spiked  axe."  Whatever  its  character,  the  original  of  the 
figure  is  said  to  have  been  found  with  other  bronze  relics  at 
Strachur,  Argyleshire. 

An  example  of  a  chisel  of  elongated  form  is  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  f  at  Edinburgh,  but  it  is  uncertain  in  what  part  of  Scotland  it 
was  found.  By  the  kindness  of  the  Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiqua- 
ries of  Scotland  it  is  shown  as  Fig.  198. 


Fig.  t98.—  Scotland.        *  Fig.  199.—  Ireland. 


In  Ireland  they  are  much  more  common.  There  are  thirteen 
specimens  in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  as  cata- 
logued by  the  late  Sir  William  Wilde,  +  varying  in  length  from 
2i  to  6  j  inches.  Some  of  these  Irish  chisels,  which  approximate  to 
ilat  celts  in  character,  have  already  been  described  in  Chapter  III. 

That  which  Wilde  has  given  as  his  Fig.  395  is  almost  identical  in 
form  with  the  chisel  from  Ireland  in  my  own  collection  which  is  here 
engraved  as  Fig.  199,  though  considerably  longer  altogether,  and  some- 
what longer  proportionally  in  the  tang. 

I  have  another  example  from  Belaghey,  County  Antrim,  which  is  6f 
inches  long,  and  much  stouter  in  the  tang  and  in  the  neck  of  the  blade 
than  that  here  figured.  It  is  only  If  inches  wide  at  the  edge. 

*  "Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  381,  fig.  54. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  613.  J  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  520. 


SOCKETED    CHISELS.  171 

Among  those  in  the  museum  at  Dublin  is  one  which  is  decorated 
with  knobs  round  the  collar.  Two  others  are  figured  in  "  Horse  Ferales."  * 
In  the  British  Museum  is  one  (4|  inches)  with  a  well-marked  collar. 
Another,  with  the  square  tang  broken  off,  has  a  loop  at  the  side  of  the 
round  part  of  the  blade,  which  is  2|  inches  long.  This  curious  specimen 
was  found  near  Burrisokane,  county  Tipperary. 

Another  chisel  (4f  inches)  in  the  same  collection  has  side-projections 
only,  like  Fig.  195. 

Another  (3J  inches),  with  a  well-developed  collar,  is  engraved  in  the 
Archaological  Journal.]  The  form  shades  off  into  that  of  the  flat  celts 
having  projections  at  the  sides. 

Others  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Eobert  Day,  F.S.A.,  resemble  Fig.  196 
(4^- inches)  and  Fig.  197  (6  inches).  The  latter  was  found  at  Kanturk, 
Co.  Cork. 

Tanged  chisels  have  been  found,  though  not  abundantly,  in 
France.  One  from  Beauvais  is  in  the  museum  at  St.  Germain. 

The  socketed  form  of  chisel  is  by  no  means  common  in  this 
country ;  but  some  instruments,  probably  intended  for  use  as 
chisels,  have  already  been  described  among  the 
socketed  celts  not  provided  with  loops.  These 
are  all  comparatively  broad  at  the  cutting  edge  ; 
but  there  is  another  variety,  with  a  narrow  end, 
formed  much  like  the  modern  engineer's  "cross- 
cut chisel,"  some  specimens  of  which  will  be  now 
described. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  200  is  from  the  great  find 
of  Carlton    Rode,J    Norfolk   (1844),   from  which 
several  specimens,  including  a  tanged  chisel  (Fig. 
192*)  and  a  socketed  celt  without  loop  (Fig.  160), 
have   already  been   described ;    and    some   other 
forms,  such  as  gouges  and  hammers,  have  yet  to  be 
mentioned.     The  edge  is  only  -o-ths  of  an  inch  in         Caritfn  Rode 
width,  and  the  tool  seems  well  adapted  for  cutting 
mortises.     The  idea  of  a  mortise  and  tenon  must  be  of  very  early 
date,    as  a  mere  stake  driven   into  the  ground  supplies  it  in  a 
rudimentary  form  ;  and  tools  let  into  sockets,  or  having  sockets  to 
receive  handles,  afford  instances  of  connections  of  the  same  kind. 
In  our  modern  mortising  chisels  the  cutting  edge,  instead  of  being 
in  the  middle  of  the  blade,  so  as  to  have  a  V-shaped  section,  is 
usually  at  the  side,  and  presents  an  outline  like  the  upper  part  of  a 
K,  V .  I  have  not  met  with  this  bevelled  edge  among  bronze  chisels. 

*  PI.  v.  43,  44.  t  Vol.  viii.  p.  91. 

1  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  80  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  pp.  57,  59 ;  Smith's  "  Coll. 
Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  105  ;  Arch.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  494  ;  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  40. 


172  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.   VII. 


On  the  side  of  this  Carlton  Rode  chisel  may  be  seen  the 
mark  of  the  joint  of  the  mould  in  which  it  was  cast.  The  socket, 
as  usual  with  these  tools,  is  circular. 

A  bronze  chisel  of  the  same  form,  3f  inches  long,  was  found  at  Rom- 
ford,*  Essex,  in  company  with  socketed  celts,  palstaves,  fragments  of 
swords,  a  broken  spear-head,  and  lumps  of  metal.  It  has  already  been 
figured. 

In  the  hoard  found  at  Westow,  Yorkshire,  already  mentioned,  were 
two  or  three  socketed  chisels.  One  of  them,  2£  inches  long,  is  engraved 
in  the  Archaeological  Journal.]  That  which  I  have  here  engraved  as 
Fig.  201  is  probably  the  same  specimen.  It  is  now  in  the  collection  of 
Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.  Tanged  chisels,  gouges,  and  socketed  celts 
were  found  at  the  same  time. 

In  the  same  collection  is  a  somewhat  smaller  chisel,  the  socket  of  which 
is  square  instead  of  circular.  This  was  found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave, 

Durham,  together  with  a  number  of 
objects,  belonging  to  the  Bronze 
Period,  of  which  further  mention 
will  be  made  hereafter.  Another, 
found  at  Roseberry  Topping,  York- 
shire, is  now  in  the  Bateman  Collec- 
tion, at  Sheffield.  A  small  narrow- 
edged  chisel  was  found  in  a  hoard  at 
Meldreth,  Cambridgeshire. 

I  am  not  aware  of  any  socketed 
chisels  of  the  narrow  form  having 
been  found  in  Scotland, 
wfstow.  i  HeaiS$tam.   *          I*  Ireland  they  are  rare,  but  in 

the  collection  of  Mr.  R.  Day,  F.S.A., 

are  a  few  specimens  of  undoubtedly  chisel-like  character.     The  broad 
celt-like  form  has  been  described  in  a  previous  chapter. 

In  France  they  are  also  far  from  common.  There  are,  however, 
two  in  the  museum  at  Tours,  found  at  the  Chatellier  d'Amboise. 
There  is  also  one  in  the  museum  at  Narbonne.J  They  have  been 
found  in  Savoy,  §  Doubs,||  and  Jura.^f 

Several  have  been  found  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Switzerland.**  One 
with  a  treble  moulding  round  the  mouth  and  a  polygonal  neck  from 
Moerigenft  exhibits  much  taste  in  its  manufacture. 

A  number  of  chisels  both  of  the  tanged  and  the  socketed  forms  were 
present  in  the  great  hoard  of  bronze  objects  discovered  at  Bologna. 

Socketed  examples  from  Italy  are  in  the  museum  at  Copenhagen,]:]:  and 
in  the  British  Museum. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  303. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  382.     See  also  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  58,  fig.  4. 

I  "Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  12. 

§  Exp.  Arch,  de  Savoie,  1878,  pi.  xxi.  No.  3 ;  pi.  vi.  215,  216 ;  Perrin,  "  Et.  Preh.  de 
la  Sav.,"  pi.  x.  8. 

||  Chantre,  "  Album,"  pi.  x.  7.  H  Ibid.  No.  5. 

**  Keller,  6ter  Bericht,  Taf.  ix.  38;  7ter  Ber.,  Taf.  vii.  2,  3,  5,  &c. ;  Desor,  "Les 
Palafittes,"  fig.  46. 

ft  Desor  and  Favre,  "  Le  Bel  Age  du  Br.,"  pi.  i.  7- 

£J  "Cong.  Preh.,"  Copenhagen  vol.  p.  485. 


TANGED    GOUGES.  173 

I  have  some  from  Macarsca,  Dalmatia,  of  which  the  sockets  have  been 
formed  by  hammering  out  the  metal  and  turning  it  over,  instead  of  being 
produced  as  usual,  by  means  of  a  core  in  the  casting. 

Socketed  chisels  from  Emmen  and  Deurne,  Holland,  are  in  the 
museum*  at  Ley  den. 

From  North  Germany  I  may  cite  one  (6fc  inches)  from  Schlieben,f 
which  is  in  the  Berlin  Museum. 

Others  are  engraved  by  Lindenschmit,]  Schreiber,§  andLisch.|| 

One  from  Kempten,  Bavaria,  is  in  the  Sigrnaringen  Collection.^ 

GOUGES. 

Closely  allied  to  chisels  are  gouges,  in  which  the  edge,  instead 
of  being  straight,  is  curved  or  hollowed,  so  that  it  is  adapted  for 
working  out  rounded  or  oval  holes.  In  some  languages,  indeed, 
the  name  by  which  these  tools  are  known  is  that 
of  "  hollow  chisels."  It  is  an  early  form  of  instrument, 
and  a  few  specimens  made  of  flint  have  been  found 
in  this  country,  though  they  are  here  extremely  rare, 
while,  on  the  contrary,  they  are  very  abundant  in 
Denmark  and  the  South  of  Sweden.  In  the  Scandi- 
navian countries,  however,  bronze  gouges  are  never 
found  ;  and  though  gouges  of  stone  were  not  unknown 
in  this  country  during  its  Stone  Period,  their  suc- 
cessors in  bronze  do  not  appear  to  belong  to  the  early 
part  of  the  Bronze  Period,  but,  on  the  contrary,  seem 
to  be  characteristic  of  its  later  phases. 

Of  bronze  gouges  there  are  the  same  two  varieties 
as  of  the  ordinary  chisel,  viz.  the  tanged  and  the 
socketed,  of  which  the  former  is  far  rarer  than  the 
latter.  Indeed  the  only  tanged  gouge  from  Britain 
with  which  I  am  acquainted  is  that  from  the  Carlton 
Kode**  hoard,  already  so  often  mentioned,  which  is  2Q3 

shown  in  Fig.   203.     The  original  is  in  the  Norwich      c|S|fn 
Museum,  the  trustees  of  which  kindly  allowed  me  to 
engrave  it.     As  will  be  seen,  it  is  of  remarkably  narrow  form, 
especially  as  contrasted  with  the  socketed  gouge  from  the  same 
hoard  shown  in  Fig.  207.     There  was  a  broken  tanged  gouge  in 
the  great  hoard  of  bronze  objects  found  at  Bologna. 

*  Jannsen's  "Catal.,"  No.  21. 
t  Schreiber,  "Die  ehern.  Streitkeile,"  Taf.  ii.  11. 
}  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  v.  Taf.  iii.  §  Taf.  ii.  10. 

||  "  Freder.  Francisc.,"  Tab.  xxxiii.  5.  I  Lindenschmit,  Taf.  xlii.  7. 

**  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  80  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  51, 59  ;  "  Horae  Ferales," 
pi.  v.  42. 


174  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.         [cHAP.  VII. 

Of  English  socketed  gouges  the  most  common  form  is  that  shown  in 
Fig.  204,  from  an  original  in  the  British  Museum,  which  was  found  with 
a  spear-head  (Fig.  391),  socketed  knife  (Fig.  240),  hammer  (Fig.  210), 
awl  (Fig.  224),  and  two  socketed  celts,  at  Thorndon,*  in  Suffolk.  There 
were  six  gouges  of  the  same  character,  but  of  different  sizes,  in  the  hoard 
found  at  Westow,f  Yorkshire,  some  of  which  have  been  figured.  Another 
(3£  inches)  found  with  socketed  celts  and  some  curious  ornaments  under 
a  large  stone  at  Eoseberry  Topping,  J  in  Cleveland,  has  also  been  figured. 
Another  was  found  with  socketed  celts  and  spear-heads  at  Exning,§  in 
Suffolk.  The  cutting  end  of  another  was  associated  with  socketed  celts 
in  the  hoard  discovered  at  Martlesham  in  the  same  county.  Part  of 
another  was  discovered,  with  a  socketed  celt,  fragments  of  blades,  and 
rough  copper,  at  Melbourn,||  Cambridgeshire.  Another  was  found, 
with  socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  and  an  armlet,  within  the  encampment 
on  Beacon  Hill,^]  Charnwood  Forest,  Leicestershire.  Another,  with 
socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  &c.,  at  Ebnall,** 
near  Oswestry ;  and  another  (2£  inches),  with 
g^^^^  socketed  celts,  fragments  of  knives,  a  button  or 
•jj^^^B  stud,  and  lumps  of  metal,  at  Kensington. ff  This 
hoard  is  in  the  British  Museum.  A  gouge  was 
found  with  four  socketed  celts  and  about  30  Ibs. 


of  rough  copper  in  an  urn  at  Sittingbourne,^ 
Kent.  A  plain  gouge  formed  part  of  the  hoard 
found  at  Stanhope,  §§  Durham.  A  remarkably 
fine  gouge,  4J  inches  long  and  nearly  1£  inch 
wide  at  the  edge,  was  found,  with  spear-heads, 
socketed  celts,  part  of  a  celt  mould,  and  lumps 
of  metal,  at  Beddington,||||  Surrey.  At  Porking- 
ton,^[^[  Shropshire,  a  gouge  accompanied  the 
tanged  chisel  lately  mentioned.  In  the  hoard 
found  at  Gruilsfield,***  Montgomeryshire,  there 
Thorndon.  i  ifarty.  j  were  two  gouges  in  company  with  looped  pal- 
staves, socketed  celts,  &c.  In  my  own  collection 

are  three  socketed  gouges,  about  3£  inches  long,  which  form  part  of 
the  hoard  from  Eeach  Fen,  Cambridgeshire,  in  which  were  socketed 
celts,  socketed  and  tanged  knives,  and  numerous  other  objects.  In 
some  of  the  instances  cited,  as  at  Gruilsfield  and  Ebnall,  the  upper  part  of 
the  socket  is  beaded  instead  of  plain.  One  of  this  kind  from  the  Harty 
hoard  already  mentioned  is  shown  in  Fig.  205.  There  were  two  such  in 
the  hoard,  which  comprised  numerous  socketed  celts  and  the  moulds  for 
them,  and  various  tools  of  the  bronze-founder.  There  were  also  the  two 
halves  of  a  bronze  mould  for  such  gouges  which  will  subsequently  be 
described.  In  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge  Antiquarian  Society  is  a 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3 ;  "  Horas.  Fer.,"  pi.  v.  36. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  381,  408  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  58. 

%  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  p.;55,  pi.  vii.  5 ;  Arch.  JEliana,  vol.  ii.  p.  213,  pi.  iv.  c. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3.  ||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  294. 

f  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  323. 

**  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  167 ;  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  35. 

tt  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  232. 

Smith's  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  101 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  81. 

Arch.  jEliana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  ii.  12. 

"  Surrey  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.,"  vol.  vi.  f  H  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  195. 

***  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  214 ;  "Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 


SOCKETED    GOUGES. 


175 


gouge  from  Bottisham  Lode  (3  inches)  with  a  slight  shoulder  about  £  inch 
from  the  top  of  the  blade,  the  upper  part  of  the  neck  being  larger  than 
the  lower.  One  of  three  found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave  (2f-  inches)  is 
also  shouldered.  Of  the  other  two  (3f  inches  and  3  J  inches)  one  is  very 
slightly  shouldered.  They  are  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S. , 
as  is  also  a  plain  example  (3J  inches)  from  Scothorn,  Lincolnshire. 

In  the  British  Museum  are  the  unfinished  castings  for  two  gouges,  one 
2£  inches  long  and  fully  J  inch  wide,  and  the  other  3  inches  long  and 
|  inch  wide  at  the  edge,  which  in  both  is  but  slightly  hollowed.  They 
were  found  with  a  socketed  celt  (Fig.  146)  near  Blandford,  Dorset.  The 
longer  one  is  of  very  white  and  hard 
bronze. 

Two  gouges,  one  3£  inches  and  the 
other  broader,  but  only  2  inches 
long,  found  with  various  other  ob- 
jects at  Hounslow;  as  well  as  one 
from  the  Thames  at  Battersea  (4 
inches),  are  in  the  same  collection. 

Two  gouges  (3£  inches  and  5 
inches)  were  found,  with  a  hammer, 
a  spear-head,  and  a  socketed  celt 
with  a  loop  on  the  face  (Fig.  154), 
near  Whittlesea.  The  whole  are  in 
the  museum  at  Wisbech. 

Two  from  Derbyshire  are  in  the 
Blackmore  Museum  at  Salisbury. 

A  socketed  gouge  of  unusually 
long  proportions  is  shown  in  Fig. 
206.  It  was  found  at  Undley,  near 
Lakenheath,  Suffolk,  and  is  in  my 
own  collection.  In  the  Carlton  Rode 
hoard  were  also  two  long  gouges 
with  the  hollow  extending  more 
nearly  to  the  socket  end.  They  are 
both  rather  trumpet-mouthed.  One 
of  them  is  4£  inches  long  and  -&- 
inch  wide  at  the  edge,  the  other 
4£  inches  long  and  %  inch  wide.  I  have  not  seen  the  originals,  but 
describe  them  from  a  lithographed  plate. 

The  broad  short  gouge  shown  in  Fig.  207  is  also  from  Carlton  Eode. 
It  is  broken  at  the  mouth  of  the  socket,  but  I  have,  in  the  figure,  restored 
the  part  that  is  wanting.  The  original  was  lent  me  by  the  trustees  of 
the  Norwich  Museum.  Another*  from  the  same  hoard,  about  3J  inches 
long,  has  the  groove,  which  is  wide  and  rather  flat,  extending  only  an  inch 
upwards  from  the  edge. 

Socketed  gouges  have  been  found,  though  very  rarely,  in  Scotland. 
That  shown  in  Fig.  208,  the  cut  of  which  has  been  kindly  lent  to 
me  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,  was  dredged  up  in  the 
river  Tay.f  This  appears  to  be  almost  the  only  Scottish  specimen 

*  "Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  39.  f  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  TO!,  v.  p.  127. 


Fig.  206. 
Undley. 


176  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER  TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 

at  present  known.  Professor  Daniel  Wilson*  terms  it  "  one  of  the 
rarest  of  the  implements  of  bronze  hitherto  found  in  Scotland;" 
but  he  adds  that  other  specimens  have  been  met  with  in  the  Tay. 
In  Ireland  they  are  considerably  more  abundant,  there  being 
at  least  twenty  specimens  in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish 
Academy,  one  of  them  as  much  as  4|  inches  long. 

One,  much  like  Fig.  208,  has  been  engraved  by  Wilde  as  Fig.  399. 

Others  are  figured  in  the  Archaeological  Journal  \  and  "  Horse  Ferales."  J 

In  one  of  these,  2£  inches  long,  the  hollow  is  carried  up  to  the  collar 
round  the  mouth  as  a  square-ended  recess.  One  gouge 
appears  to  have  been  originally  tanged.  Several 
socketed  gouges  from  Ireland  are  in  the  British  Mu- 
seum. Mr.  E.  Day,  F.S.A.,  has  examples  from  Mul- 
lingar  and  Derry,  the  latter  with  a  collar  at  the  top. 
They  occurred  also  in  the  Dowris  hoard.  A  gouge  § 
only  2£  inches  long  and  unusually  broad  has  a  small 
loop  at  the  upper  end  of  the  concave  part.  It  is  here 
engraved  as  Fig.  209,  from  the  original  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy.  This  may  be  the  specimen 
figured  by  Vallancey.||  I  have  a  specimen  like  Fig  208. 

Fig.  209.— Ireland,  i  Socketed  gouges  are  occasionally  found  in  France. 
One,  4£  inches  long,  with  two  mouldings  round  the  top, 

ornamented  with  faint  diagonal  lines,  was  found  with  socketed  celts  and 

other  implements  in  the  Commune  de  Font-point  ^f  (Oise),  near  the  river 

Oise,  and  is  in  the  Hotel  Cluny,  Paris.    Others  from  the  Hautes  Alpes** 

and  from  the  Fonderie  de  Larnaud  have  been  figured  in  Mr.  Ernest 

Chantre's  magnificent  Album. 

There  are  three  with  moulded  tops,  from  the  hoard  of  Notre  Dame  d'Or, 

in  the  Poitiers  Museum. 

A  fine  gouge  (about  5£  inches)  with  a  moulded  top  is  in  the  museum 

at  Clermont  Ferrand  (Puy  de  Dome).     A  very  fine  French  gouge  of  this 

character  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

I  have  a  specimen  much  like  Fig.  208  found  in  the  Seine  at  Paris. 

Others  were  in  the  hoard  at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens,  and  in  a  second  hoard 

also  found  near  that  town. 

Large  gouges  with  moulded  tops,  from  the  Stations  of  Auvernier,ff  in 

the  Lake  of  Neuchatel,  and  Moerigen,  in  the  Lake  of  Bienne,  are  in 

Dr.  Victor  Gross's  collection. 

There  was  at  least  one  socketed  gouge  in  the  great  Bologna  hoard. 
In  Germany  they  are  very  rare,   but  one  from  the  museum  at  Sig- 

maringen,  with  a  somewhat  decorated  socket,  is  engraved  by  Lindenschmit. 

It  was  found  at  Kempten,  Bavaria.jJ     Others,  from  Diiren  and  Deurne, 

North  Brabant,  Holland,  are  in  the  museum  at  Leyden. 

*  "  Preh.  Ann.  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  388.  t  Vol.  iv.  p.  335,  pi.  iii.  1,  2,  3,  4. 

}  PI.  v.  37,  38,  41.  §  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  38. 

||  Vol.  iv.  pi.  ix.  5. 

f  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  34  ;   Eev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xiii.  pi.  ii.  x. 

**  PI.  x.  6,  and  xl.  5.     See  also  Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  Norm.,  1828—9,  pi.  xvi.  16. 

tt  "Deux  Stations  Lacustres,"  pi.  iv.  34.     Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  4;  Desor 


and  Favre,  "  Le  Bel  Age  du  Br.,"  pi.  i.  5. 

H  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  Heft.  v.  Taf.  iii.  9,  10  ;  "  Hohenzoll.  Samml.,"  pi. 


xlii.  7. 


SOCKETED    HAMMERS.  177 

A  socketed  gouge,  with,  the  edge  turned  to  a  sweep  of  about  1  inch  radius, 
is  in  the  museum  at  Agram,  Croatia. 

One  from  Siberia  *  has  been  figured  by  Worsaae. 


HAMMERS  AND  ANVILS. 

Another  form  of  tool  constructed  with  a  socket  to  receive  the 
handle  in  precisely  the  same  manner  as  the  socketed  celts  and  gouges 
is  the  hammer.  It  is  worthy  of  notice  that,  though  perforated  ham- 
mers formed  of  stone  are  comparatively  abundant  in  this  country, 
yet  that  instruments  of  the  same  kind  in  bronze  are  unknown.  It  is 
true  that  what  looks  like  a  perforated  hammer,  said  to  be  of  bronze, 
was  found  in  Newport,  Lincoln,  and  is  engraved  in  the  Archceo- 
logical  Journal,-^  but  there  is  no  evidence  of  its  belonging  to  the 
same  period  as  the  ordinary  tools  formed  of  bronze  ;  and  the 
suggestion  that  it  may  have  been  the  extremity  of  a  bell-clapper 
is,  I  think,  not  far  from  the  truth.  It  is  very  probable  that  many 
of  the  perforated  stone  hammers  belong  to  the  Bronze  Period  of  this 
country,  as  do  doubtless  most  of  the  perforated  stone  battle-axes  or 
axe-hammers ;  for  in  the  early  part  of  the  Bronze  Period  it  is  likely 
that  metal  was  far  too  valuable  to  be  used  for  heavy  tools  and 
weapons,  and  even  towards  the  close  of  the  period  it  seems  as  if 
it  was  only  the  lighter  kind  of  hammers  which  were  formed  of 
bronze.  The  heaviest  I  possess  weighs  only  five  ounces,  and  the 
lightest  less  than  half  that  weight.  As  will  subsequently  be  seen, 
it  is  possible  that  some  of  these  instruments  were  of  the  nature  of 
anvils  rather  than  of  hammers,  but  for  the  present  it  will  be  most 
convenient  to  speak  of  them  under  the  latter  name. 

The  most  common  form  of  hammer  is  that  which  is  shown  in 
Fig.  210,  from  an  original  in  the  British  Museum  found  at 
Thorndon,+  Suffolk,  in  company  with  a  spear-head,  socketed  gouge, 
socketed  knife,  and  two  socketed  celts.  The  two  hammer-like 
instruments  engraved  as  Figs.  211  and  212  were  found,  with  a 
number  of  socketed  celts,  moulds,  &c. — in  fact  the  whole  stock-in- 
trade  of  an  ancient  bronze-founder — in  the  Isle  of  Harty,  Sheppey, 
and  are  in  my  own  collection.  The  larger  of  the  two  shows  a 
considerable  amount  of  wear  at  the  end,  which  is  somewhat 
"  upset  "  by  constant  use.  The  smaller  is  more  oxidized,  so  that 
the  marks  of  use  are  less  easily  recognised.  The  metal  of  which 

*  Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  du  Nord,  1872—7,  p.  118.  f  Vol.xxvii.  p.  142. 

|  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3 ;  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol  iii.  p.  66,  where  it  is  en- 
graved full  size  ;  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  v.  33. 

N 


178 


CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 


they  are  formed  seems  to  contain  a  larger  admixture  of  tin  than  is 
usual  with  the  cutting  tools;  and  I  have  noticed  the  same  appear- 
ance in  some  other  instances,  so  that  even  in  early  times  the 


Kg.  210.—  Thorndon.  J        Fig.  211.  -Harty.  $  Fig.  212.—  Harty.  i    Fig.  213.—  Carlton  Rode 

singular  fact  must  have  been  known  that  by  adding  to  copper 
the  softer  metal,  tin,  in  a  larger  proportion  than  the  one-tenth 
usually  employed  for  bronze,  a  much  harder  metal  resulted.  At 
the  present  time  the  extremely  hard  alloy  used 
for  the  specula  of  reflecting  telescopes  is  formed 
by  an  admixture  of  about  two  parts  of  copper 
and  one  part  of  tin,  the  two  soft  metals  mixed 
in  these  proportions  forming  an  alloy  almost 
as  hard  as  hardened  steel. 

In  the  Carlton  Eode  find,  of  which  mention  has 
already  been  frequently  made,  was   a  hammer  of 
much  longer  proportions  than  those  from  the  Isle 
of  Harty.     By  the  kindness  of  the  trustees  of  the 
Norwich  Museum  I  have  been  able  to  engrave  it  as 
Fig.  213.     It  expands  considerably  at  the  mouth. 
As  will  be  seen,  the  end  is  "  upset  "  by  use.     What 
appears  to  be  a  hammer  of  much  the  same  kind, 
but  with  the  face  still  smaller,  was  found  with  a 
hoard  of  bronze  objects,  including  palstaves,  spear- 
heads,  flat  sickles,  a  torque,  &c.,  at  Taunton.*     It 
is  shown  in  Fig.  214. 
A  hammer  somewhat  larger  in  its  dimensions  than  Fig.  211,  but  in 
type  more  resembling  Fig.  212,  having  no  shoulder  upon  its  body,  was 
found  at  Eoseberry  Topping,!  in  Cleveland,  with  a  socketed  celt,  a  gouge, 

*  Arch.  Joarn.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  94  ;  Pring,  "  Brit,  and  Roman  Taunton,"  pi.  i.  2. 
t  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  p.  55,  pi.  vii.  4;  Arch.  JEliana,  vol.  ii.  p.  213,  pi.  iv.  b. 


Fig.  2u.-Taunton. 


IRISH   HAMMERS. 


179 


and  other  objects.  Another  broken  hammer  was  found,  with  a  hoard 
of  bronze  objects,  at  Stanhope,*  Durham. 

A  small  hammer  (2£  inches),  found  with  gouges  and  other  objects  near 
Whittlesea,  is  in  the  Wisbech  Museum. 

Another  with  a  circular  socket  was  in  the  hoard  found  in  Burgesses' 
Meadow,  Oxford. 

A  small  one  was  found  at  Kugby,f  and  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr. 
M.  H.  Bloxam,  F.S.A.  I  have  one  (3  inches)  found  near  Cambridge. 

I  am  not  aware  of  any  examples  having  as  yet  been  found  in 
Scotland. 

In  Ireland  they  are  rare,  but  four  "round-faced  socketed 
punches,"  varying  from  2  to  4  inches  in  length,  are  mentioned  in 
Wilde's  Catalogue.  These  are  probably  hammers. 

In  the  British  Museum  are  also  several  Irish  hammers,  one  of  which  is 
shown  full  size  in  Fig.  215,  for  the  use  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  the 


Fig.  216.— Downs, 


Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.]:  It  is  cylindrical  in  form,  with 
two  rings  of  projecting  knobs  around  it.  The  end  is  circular  and  slightly 
convex,  and  has  a  ridge  across  it,  due  to  constant  use.  Another,  found, 
with  trumpets,  spear-heads,  and  numerous  other  bronze  relics,  at  Dowris,  § 
King's  County,  is  shown  in  Fig.  216,  also  lent  me  by  the  same  Council. 
It  is  of  a  different  type  from  any  of  the  others,  expanding  beyond  the 
socket  into  a  large  flat  blade.  It  appears  never  to  have  been  in  use. 
Two  other  small  Irish  specimens,  one  with  a  long  oval  face,  are  in  the 
British  Museum.  I  have  a  hammer  (2£  inches)  much  like  Fig.  210,  but 

*  Arch.  jEllana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  ii.  13. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  129  ;  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  v.  32. 

I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  66.  §  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  65. 

N  2 


180  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 

with  the  shoulder  nearer  the  top,  found  with  a  socketed  celt  and  some 
perforated  and  other  rings,  near  Trillick,  Co.  Tyrone.  I  have  also  an 
imperfect  specimen  with  the  end  expanded,  but  not  to  the  same  extent 
as  Fig.  216.  This  was  found  with  a  broken  sword,  spear-heads,  and  a 
socketed  knife,  on  Bo  Island,  Enniskillen,  and  was  kindly  procured  for 
me  by  the  Earl  of  Enniskillen. 

Socketed  hammers  have  been  found  in  several  European  countries. 
I  have  two  from  France.  One  of  them  (3£  inches),  like  Fig.  212  in 
form,  was  found,  with  a  spear-head,  a  double-edged  knife,  some  curved 
cutting  tools,  and  an  anvil  of  bronze  (Fig.  217),  together  with  a  large 
torque  and  a  plain  bracelet  of  gold,  at  Fresne  la  Mere,  near  Falaise, 
Calvados.  The  other  (2  inches),  stouter  in  its  proportions  and  more 
like  Fig.  210,  was  found  near  Angerville,  Seine  et  Oise.  A  short  thick 
hammer  was  found  at  Briatexte,  Tarn.* 

An  instrument  in  the  British  Museum,  in  form  much  like  Fig.  216, 
found  at  Vienne  (Isere  ?),  has  only  a  small  square  hole  in  the  socket,  and 
may  have  served  as  an  anvil  rather  than  as  a  hammer.  A  hammer  also 
with  expanded  end  was  found  near  Chalon,f  and  another  in  the  Yalley  of 
the  Somme.ij: 

A  cylindrical  hammer  or  anvil  was  found  in  the  hoard  of  the  Jardin  des 
Plantes  at  Nantes.  § 

Cylindrical  hammers  have  been  found  among  the  Lake-dwellings  of 
the  Lac  du  Bourget,||  Savoy,  one  of  them  provided  with  a  loop. 
M.  Ptabut,  of  Chambery,  has  a  stone  mould  from  the  same  lake  for 
casting  such  hammers.  Another  hammer-mould  of  stone  was  found  at 
the  Station  of  Eaux  Vives,  near  Geneva. 

In  my  own  collection  is  one  of  these  looped  socketed  hammers,  nearly 
square  in  section,  from  Auvernier,  in  the  Lake  of  Neuchatel.  Others 
from  Swiss  Lake-dwellings,  both  with  and  without  loops,  are  engraved  by 
Keller.  Professor  Desor  has  a  hammer  expanding  towards  the  end  from 
the  Lake  of  Neuchatel.^f  A  hammer  found  at  Mcerigen  **  seems  to  have 
been  formed  from  a  portion  of  a  looped  palstave.  The  Lake-dwellers 
frequently  utilized  such  broken  instruments.  Another  hammer,  from  the 
Lake  of  Bienne,ff  is  hexagonal  in  section,  and  ornamented  with  reversed 
chevrons  on  its  faces. 

They  are  occasionally  found  in  Hungary.  I  have  seen  one  ornamented 
with  chevrons  in  relief  upon  the  sides.  One  with  saltires  on  the  sides, 
and  some  fragments  of  others,  were  in  the  Bologna  hoard. 

The  object  engraved  by  Madsen  J  J  as  possibly  the  ferrule  of  a  lance  may 
be  a  hammer  of  this  kind. 

A  solid  bronze  hammer  (4£  inches),  of  oblong  section,  with  two  pro- 
jecting lugs  on  each  side  for  securing  the  handle,  found  near  Przemysl, 
Poland,  was  exhibited  at  the  Prehistoric  Congress  at  Pesth.  It  was 


*  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiv.  pi.  ix.  6. 

t  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.  p.  38. 

J  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  p.  452. 


§  Parenteau,  "Le  fondeur  du  Jard.  des  Plantes;"  "Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  p.  190, 
pi.  viii.  10. 

||  "Exp.  Arch,  de  la  Sav.,"  1878,  pi.  v. ;  Chantre,  "  Album,"  pi.  v.  1. ;  Perrin,  "  Et. 
Preh.  sur  la  Sav.,"  pi.  x.  6,  7,  xix.  17. 

H  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  9. 

**  Desor  et  Favre,  "  Le  Bel  Age  du  Bi'.,"  pi.  i.  9 ;  Gross, "  Deux  Stations,"  pi.  iii.  22. 

ft  Desor,  "  Les  Palafittes,"  fig.  47.  ft  "  Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  13,  15. 


METHOD   OF    HAFTING   HAMMERS.  181 

found  with  a  bronze  spear-head,  and  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Academy  of 
Sciences  at  Cracow. 

As  to  the  manner  in  which  these  socketed  hammers  were 
mounted  we  have  no  direct  evidence.  It  seems  probable,  however, 
that  many  of  them  had  crooked  hafts  of  the  same  character  as 
those  of  the  socketed  celts.  It  is  worth  notice  that  on  some  of 
the  coins  of  Cunobeline  *  there  is  a  seated  figure  at  work  forging 
a  hemispherical  vase,  and  holding  in  his  hand  a  hammer  which  in 
profile  is  just  like  a  narrow  axe,  the  head  not  projecting  beyond 
the  upper  side  of  the  handle.  A  seated  figure  on  a  hitherto 
unpublished  silver  coin  of  Dubnovellaunus,  a  British  prince  con- 
temporary with  Augustus,  holds  a  similar  hammer,  or  possibly  a 
hatchet,  in  his  hand.  But  though  when  in  use  as  hammers  they 
were  mounted  with  crooked  shafts,  it  is  quite  possible  that  some 
of  these  instruments  may  have  been  fitted  on  to  the  end  of  straight 
stakes  and  have  served  as  anvils.  The  Eev.  W.  C.  Lukis,  F.S.A., 
informs  me  that  at  the  present  day  the  peasants  of  Brittany  make 
use  of  iron-tipped  stakes,  which,  when  driven  into  the  ground, 
form  convenient  anvils  on  which  to  hammer  out  the  edges  of  their 
sickles,  and  which  have  the  great  advantage  of  being  portable. 
Though  such  anvils  are  not,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  any  longer  used 
in  this  country,  traces  of  their  having  been  formerly  employed 
appear  to  be  preserved  in  our  language,  for  a  small  anvil  to  cut 
and  punch  upon,  and  on  which  to  hammer  cold  work,  is  still 
termed  a  "  stake." 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  an  implement  of  the  same  kind  as 
these  so-called  socketed  hammers,  and  made  in  the  same  manner,  of 
a  very  hard  greyish  alloy,  was  found  in  the  cemetery  at  Hallstatt,t 
and  was  regarded  by  the  Baron  von  Sacken  as  a  small  anvil.  A 
bronze  file  was  found  with  it. 

It  is  also  to  be  observed  that  of  the  two  hammer-like  instruments 
found  together  in  the  Harty  hoard  one  is  much  larger  than  the 
other,  and  may  have  formed  the  head  of  a  stake  or  anvil,  while 
the  other  served  as  a  hammer.  Still,  as  a  rule,  a  flat  stone  must 
have  served  as  the  anvil  in  early  times,  as  it  does  now  among  the 
native  iron-workers  of  Africa,  and  did  till  quite  recently,  for  many 
of  the  country  blacksmiths  and  tinkers  of  Ireland.  +  Among 
Danish  antiquities  some  carefully  made  anvils  of  stone  occur,  but 

*  Evans,  "  Anc.  Brit.  Coins,"  pi.  xii.  6. 

t  "Grabfeld  von  HaUstatt,"  pi.  xix.  11,  p.  89. 

t  Wilde,  "Catal.  Stone  Ant.  in  E.  I.  A.  Mus.,"  p.  81. 


182 


CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.        [CHAP.  VII. 


I  am  not  certain  as  to  the  exact  age  to  which  they  should  be 
assigned. 

Bronze  anvils  of  the  form  now  in  use  are  of  extremely  rare  occur- 
rence hi  any  country.  That  figured  by  Sir  William  Wilde  *  appears 
to  me  to  be  of  more  recent  date  than  the  Bronze  Period,  and  I  am  not 
aware  of  any  other  specimen  having  been  found  in  the  British  Isles ; 
but  as  it  is  a  form  of  tool  which  may  eventually  be  discovered,  it 
seems  well  to  call  attention  to  it  by  engraving  a  French  example. 
This  anvil  is  shown  in  two  views,  in  Figs.  217  and  218.  As  will  be 
seen,  it  is  adapted  for  being  used  in  two  positions,  according  as  one 
or  the  other  pointed  end  is  driven  into  the  workman's  bench.  In 
one  position  it  presents  at  the  end  two  plane-surfaces,  the  one  broad 


Fig.  217.— FresniS  la  M6re. 


and  the  other  narrow,  inclined  to  each  other  at  an  angle  of  about 
120  degrees,  so  that  their  junction  forms  a  ridge.  This  part  of  the 
anvil  has  seen  much  service,  as  there  is  a  thick  burr  all  round  it, 
caused  by  the  expansion  of  the  metal  under  repeated  blows. 
On  the  projecting  beak  there  are  three  slight  grooves  gradually 
increasing  in  size,  and  apparently  intended  for  swages  in  which  to 
draw  out  pins.  In  the  other  position  the  anvil  presents  no  smooth 
surface  on  which  to  hammer,  but  a  succession  of  swages  of  different 
forms — some  half-round,  some  V-shaped,  and  some  |/\| -shaped. 
There  are  also  some  oval  recesses,  as  if  for  the  heads  of  pins.  The 
metal  of  which  the  anvil  is  made  appears  to  contain  more  tin  than 
the  ordinary  bronze,  and  therefore  to  be  somewhat  harder.  On 
one  face  is  the  mark  of  the  runner  f  inch  in  diameter,  which 
was  broken  off  after  the  tool  was  cast. 

*  "  Catal.  Mua.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  401. 


FRENCH    ANVILS.  183 

This  interesting  tool  was  found  with  the  hammer  already  men- 
tioned, a  spear-head,  a  double-edged  knife  or  razor,  a  knife  with 
the  end  bent  round  so  as  to  present  a  gouge-like  edge,  and  a  large 
curved  cutting-tool  of  the  same  character  (Fig.  247),  all  of  bronze, 
at  Fresne  la  Mere,  near  Falaise,  Calvados.  With  them  was  a 
magnificent  gold  torque  with  recurved  cylindrical  ends,  the  twisted 
part  being  of  cruciform  section  ;  and  a  plain  penannular  ring  or 
bracelet,  formed  from  what  was  a  cylindrical  rod.  The  whole 
find  is  now  in  my  own  collection.  It  is  not  by  any  means 
improbable  that  this  anvil  was  rather  the  tool  of  a  goldsmith  of 
the  Bronze  Age  than  that  of  a  mere  bronze-  worker. 

I  have  another  anvil  of  about  the  same  size,  but  thinner,  which  was 
found  in  the  Seine  at  Paris.  It  also  can  be  mounted  two  ways,  but  in 
each  position  it  presents  a  nearly  flat  but  somewhat  inclined  face,  and 
there  are  no  swages  in  the  beaks,  one  of  which  is  conical  and  the  other 
nearly  rectangular. 

M.  Ernest  Chantre  has  engraved  two  other  specimens,  somewhat 
differing  in  form,  but  of  much  the  same  general  character.  They  were 
found  near  Chalon-sur-Saone  and  near  Geneva.*  The  analysis  of  the 
metal  of  one  of  them  gives  16  parts  of  tin  to  84  parts  of  copper. 

Another  bronze  anvil  is  in  the  museum  at  Amiens,  and  a  fifth,  also 
from  France,  is  in  the  British  Museum.  This  has  a  flat  projecting  ledge 
at  the  top,  and  at  right  angles  a  slightly  tapering  beak.  An  anvil  of  the 
same  kind,  but  without  the  beak,  was  found  with  other  objects  near 
Amiens,  and  is  now  in  the  museum  of  that  town. 

A  small  anvil  without  a  beak,  found  at  Auvernier,f  in  the  Lake  of 
Neuchatel,  is  in  the  collection  of  Dr.  Gross.  A  square  flat  anvil,  some- 
what dented  on  the  face,  formed  part  of  the  Bologna  hoard. 

In  my  own  collection  is  what  appears  to  have  been  a  larger  anvil  of 
bronze,  which  was  found,  with  other  instruments  of  the  same  metal,  at 
Macarsca,  Dalmatia.  In  form  it  is  not  unlike  an  ordinary  hammer-head 
about  5  inches  long  ;  but  the  eye  through  it  appears  to  be  too  small  for  it 
ever  to  have  served  to  receive  a  haft  of  the  ordinary  kind,  though  it 
probably  held  a  handle  by  which  to  steady  the  tool  when  in  use.  One 
end  is  nearly  square  and  but  slightly  convex  ;  the  other  is  oblong  and 
rounded  the  narrow  way.  Both  ends  are  much  worn.  On  one  face  and 
one  side  are  rounded  notches  or  swages.  This  tool  has  been  cast  in  an 
open  mould,  as  one  face  presents  the  rough  surface  of  the  molten  metal, 
which  contains  a  large  proportion  of  tin.  The  other  face  and  the  sides  are 
fairly  smooth. 

SAWS  AND  FILES. 

While  speaking  of  bronze  tools,  which  up  to  the  present 
time  have  not  been  noticed  in  Britain,  but  which  may  probably 
be  some  day  discovered  —  if,  indeed,  they  have  not  already  been 
found  —  the  saw  must  not  be  forgotten. 


*  "Age  d 
t  Keller, 


du  Br.,"  ptie.  i.  p.  39. 
7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  8  ;  Gross,  "Deux  Stations,"  pi.  iii.  28. 


184  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER  TOOLS.        [CHAP.  VII. 

A  fragment  of  what  lias  been  regarded  as  a  rudely  formed  saw  of 
bronze  was  indeed  found,  with  a  sword  and  several  celts,  at  Mawgan,* 
Cornwall,  and  is  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  It  is 
4  inches  by  f  inch,  coarsely  toothed,  and  the  serrations  appear  to  have 
been  cast.  I  am,  however,  rather  doubtful  whether  it  was  really  a  saw. 

Saws  have  been  found  both  in  Scandinavia  and  in  France,  in  the  latter 
country  in  hoards  apparently  belonging  to  the  later  portion  of  the  Bronze 
Period.  One  from  Ribiers,f  Hautes  ALpes,  is  about  5£  inches  long  and 
£  inch  broad,  slightly  curved,  and  with  a  rivet-hole  at  one  end  for  attach- 
ment to  the  handle.  Two  from  the  "Fonderie  de  Larnaud,"  J  Jura,  are 
nearly  one-half  smaller.  There  were  five  specimens  in  that  hoard,  and 
M.  Chantre  enumerates  sixteen  altogether  from  various  parts  of  France 
and  Switzerland.  A  fine  specimen,  with  a  rivet-hole  for  the  handle,  was 
found  at  Mcerigen,§  in  the  Lake  of  Bienne. 

The  Scandinavian  ||  type  is  of  much  the  same  character,  though  some 
are  more  sickle-like  in  shape,  with  the  teeth  on  the  inner  sweep. 

A  saw,  found  with  celts,  spear-heads,  diadems,  &c.,  at  Lammersdorf, 
near  Prenzlau,  is  in  the  Berlin  Museum.  A  short  one,  with  a  rivet-hole 
for  the  handle,  found  at  Stade,  is  in  that  at  Hanover. 

A  saw  of  pure  copper  was  found  in  some  excavations  of  dwellings  of 
remote  date  at  Santorin,^[  in  the  Grecian  Archipelago,  in  company  with 
various  instruments  formed  of  obsidian.  Some  fragments  of  saws  occurred 
in  the  Bologna  hoard.  Part  of  one  from  Cyprus  is  in  the  British 
Museum.  A  copper  (?)  saw  from  Niebla,  Spain,  9  inches  long,  also  in 
the  British  Museum,  has  the  teeth  arranged  to  cut  as  it  is  drawn  towards 
the  workman,  and  not  when  pushed  away  from  him. 

The  file  is  another  tool  of  exceedingly  rare  occurrence  in  bronze, 
though  not  absolutely  unknown  in  deposits  belonging  to  the  close 
of  the  Bronze  Period.  Sir  William  Wilde  **  mentions  "  a  bronze 
circular  file,  straight,  like  a  modelling  tool,"  as  being  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  but  I  have  not  seen  the 
original  and  am  not  confident  as  to  its  age.  A  file  ft  was,  however, 
found  in  the  great  hoard  of  the  Fonderie  de  Larnaud,  and  another 
from  the  Lake-dwellings  of  the  Lac  du  Bourget  is  in  the  museum 
at  Chamb&y. 

The  early  form  of  file  is  indeed  much  the  same  as  that  of  a 
very  broad  saw,  the  toothing  being  coarse  and  running  at  right 
angles  across  the  blade.  In  the  cemetery  at  Hallstatt,  ++  in  Upper 
Austria,  files  of  this  character  were  found,  several  in  bronze 
and  one  in  iron.  The  bronze  files  are  from  5  to  10  inches  long, 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  Soc.  Ant.,"  p.  16;  Arch.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  337. 
t  E.  Chantre,  "Album"  pi.  xxv.  No.  5. 

J  Chantre,  "Album,"  pi.  xliii.  §  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  11. 

||  Woraaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  157,  158;  "Cong,  preh.,"  Stockholm  vol.,  1874,  p. 
494. 

IF  "  Comptes  Rend,  de  1'Ac.  des  Sc.,"  1871,  vol.  ii.  p.  476. 
**  "  Catal.,"  p.  597,  No.  96. 

tt  -E.  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Bronze,"  lere  ptie.  p.  87. 
ft  Von  Sacken,  "  Das  Grabf.  v.  Hallst,"  pi.  xix.  12. 


SAWS,    FILES,    AND   TONGS.  185 

and  some  which  are  flat  for  the  greater  part  of  their  length  are 
drawn  down,  for  about  2  inches  at  the  end,  into  tapering  round 
files.  In  the  Bologna  hoard  were  several  fragments  of  files,  includ- 
ing one  of  a  "half-round"  file. 

TONGS  AND  PUNCHES. 

From  our  greater  acquaintance  with  the  working  of  iron  than 
with  that  of  bronze,  there  seems  to  us  a  sort  of  natural  connection 
between  the  anvil,  hammer,  and  tongs.  It  must, 
however,  be  borne  in  mind  that  bronze  is  a  metal 
which  instead  of  being,  like  iron,  tough  and  ductile, 
becomes  "short"  and  fragile  when  heated,  so  that 
all  the  hammering  to  which  the  tools  and  weapons 
of  bronze  were  subjected  in  order  to  planish  their 
faces,  or  to  draw  out  and  harden  their  edges,  was 
probably  administered  to  them  when  cold.  At  least 
one  pair  of  bronze  tongs  has,  however,  been  found, 
which  is  shown  in  Fig.  219.  This  instrument 
was  discovered,  with  numerous  other  antiquities, 
in  the  cave  at  Heathery  Burn,*  near  Stanhope 
in  Weardale,  Durham,  and  is  now  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Canon  Greenwell.  As  half  of  a  mould 
for  socketed  celts  and  some  waste  runners  of  bronze 
were  found,  it  is  evident  that  the  practice  of  casting 
bronze  was  carried  on  in  the  cave,  and  these  tongs 
were  probably  part  of  the  founder's  apparatus. 
Whether  they  were  used  merely  as  fire-tongs,  or 
for  the  purpose  of  lifting  the  crucible  or  melting- 
pot,  is  a  question.  They  appear,  however,  much  too 
light  to  be  of  service  for  the  latter  purpose. 

In  the  museum  of  the  Louvre  at  Paris  are  some 
Egyptian   tongs   of  bronze,    which   are  remarkably 
similar  to  those  from  Durham.     A  workman  seated     HeatSj  B£H.  j 
before  a  small  fireplace,  holding  a  blowpipe  to  his 
mouth  with  one  hand  and   with  a  pair  of  tongs  in  the   other, 
is  shown   in   a   painting    at    Thebes,   published   by  Sir   Gardner 
Wilkinson,  t 

What  I  have  ventured  to  regard  as  another  of  the  tools  of  the 

*  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  127. 

t  "  Anc.  Egyptians,"  vol.  iii.  p.  224,  fig.  375. 


186 


CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 


bronze-founder  is  a  kind  of  pointed  punch  or  pricker,  of  which  an 
example  is  given  in  Fig.  220.  This,  as  well  as  another  which  had 
lost  its  point,  was  found,  with  socketed  celts,  gouges,  moulds,  &c., 
forming  the  whole  stock-in-trade  of  a  bronze-founder,  in  the  Isle  of 
Harty,  Kent.  It  seems  to  have  been  furnished  with  a  wooden 
handle,  into  which  the  tang  was  driven  as  far  as  the  projecting 
stop  ;  and  its  purpose  appears  to  have  been  the  extraction  of  the 
cores  of  burnt  clay  from  out  of  the  sockets  of  the  celts.  That 
these  sockets  were  formed  over  a  core  of  clay  inserted  into  the 


fig.  220.— Harty.    *  Fig.  221.— Reach  Fen.    J  Fig.  222.— Ebnall.    i 

mould  is  proved  by  numerous  celts  having  been  found  with  the 
cores  still  in  them.  The  heat  of  the  melted  metal  was  sufficient 
to  convert  the  clay  into  terra-cotta  or  brick,  and  in  this  condition 
the  cores  have  been  preserved.  Some  force  was  necessary  to 
extract  such  hardened  cores,  and  this  could  be  well  effected  by 
driving  in  such  a  pointed  instrument  as  that  here  figured.  If  the 
two  prickers  from  the  Harty  hoard  were  originally  of  the  same 
length,  the  broken  one  has  lost  a  portion  from  its  end  exactly 
corresponding  in  length  with  the  depth  of  the  socket  of  the  largest 


PUNCHES    USED   IN    ORNAMENTING.  187 

celts  found  with  it ;  as  if  it  had  been  driven  home  through  the 
burnt  clay  quite  to  the  bottom  of  the  socket,  and  then  had  been 
broken  off  short  at  the  mouth  of  the  celt  in  the  vain  endeavour  to 
extract  it. 

Some  small  punches,  without  any  tang  for  insertion  in  a  handle, 
were  found  with  socketed  celts  and  numerous  other  objects  in  the 
hoard  from  Reach  Fen,  already  mentioned.  One  of  these  is  shown 
in  Fig.  221.  No  moulds  were  discovered  in  this  case  ;  and  though 
the  hoard  has  all  the  appearance  of  being  the  stock  of  an  ancient 
bronze -founder,  it  is  possible  that  these  shorter  punches  may  here 
have  been  used  for  some  other  purpose  than  that  of  extracting 
cores.  The  end  of  one  is  sharp,  that  of  the  other  presents  a  small 
oblong  face.  It  is  possible  that,  like  the  instruments  next  to  be 
described,  these  may  have  been  punches  used  in  the  decoration  of 
other  articles  of  bronze.  Mr.  H.  Prigg,*  in  his  description  of  this 
hoard,  has  suggested  such  an  use.  The  large  end  of  the  punch 
shown  in  the  figure  bears  no  mark  of  having  been  hammered ;  it 
may,  however,  have  been  struck  with  a  wooden  mallet.  Punches, 
more  chisel-shaped  at  the  point,  appear  to  have  been  in  use  for 
producing  the  incuse  ornaments  which  occur  on  so  many  of  the 
flat  and  flanged  celts.  I  am  not  aware  of  any  tools  which  were 
undoubtedly  used  for  this  purpose  having  been  observed  in  Britain ; 
but,  as  I  have  already  remarked,  there  were  found  at  Ebnall,t 
Salop,  two  short-edged  tools,  which  may  possibly  be  punches,  and 
if  so  may  have  been  applied  to  this  use.  One  of  these  is  shown 
in  Fig.  222,  the  block  for  which  has  been  kindly  lent  me  by  the 
Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  The  other  is  described  as 
of  similar  form  but  of  rather  longer  proportions.  They  were  found 
in  company  with  spear-heads,  celts,  gouges,  and  broad  dagger- 
blades  ;  but  it  does  not  appear  that  any  of  these  were  ornamented 
with  punch-marked  patterns.  The  tools  may,  therefore,  have  been 
merely  some  kind  of  strong  chisels,  possibly  used  for  breaking  off 
the  jets  and  superfluous  metal  from  the  castings.  The  thickness 
of  the  tool  is  rather  greater  than  the  cut  would  lead  one  to  imagine, 
being  i  inch.  These  two  tools  have  been  regarded  as  ham- 
mers, or  possibly  weights.  I  have  now  spoken  of  them  as  punches, 
or  possibly  chisels,  but  it  may  be  that  after  all  it  was  the  broad 
end  that  was  destined  for  use,  in  which  case  they  might  be  regarded 
as  anvils. 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvi.,  p.  59. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  66  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  167. 


188  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.       [CHAP.  VII. 

Whatever  the  purpose  of  these  particular  tools,  there  can  be  but 
little  doubt  that  punches  were  in  use  for  the  ornamentation  of  the 
flat  faces  and  the  sides  of  celts  ;  and  it  will  be  well  to  be  on  the 
look  out  for  such  tools  when  hoards  belonging  to  the  ancient 
bronze-founders  are  examined.  For  the  most  part,  however,  these 
seem  to  belong  to  a  period  posterior  to  that  of  the  ornamented 
flat  celts,  though  decorated  spear-heads  occur  in  them. 

Some  of  the  punches  from  the  Fonderie  de  Larnaud  and  from 
the  Lake-dwellings  may  have  served  for  decorating  other  articles  in 
bronze. 

AWLS,  DRILLS,  OR  PRICKERS. 

Allied  to  the  pointed  tools  last  described,  but  considerably 
smaller,  are  the  awls,  drills,  borers,  or  prickers  of  bronze  which 
have  so  frequently  been  found  accompanying  interments  in  barrows. 
No  doubt  such  instruments  must  have  been  in  very  extensive  and 
general  use ;  but  it  is  only  under  favourable  conditions  that  such 
small  pieces  of  metal  would  be  preserved,  and  when  preserved  it 
is  only  under  conditions  equally  favourable  that  they  would  attract 
the  attention  of  an  ordinary  labourer.  It  is,  therefore,  mainly  to 
the  barrow-digger  that  we  are  indebted  for  our  knowledge  of  these 
little  instruments.  Many  belong  to  a  very  early  part  of  the  Bronze 
Age,  but  the  form  continued  in  use  through  the  whole  period. 

A  somewhat  detailed  essay  upon  them  has  already  appeared  in 
the  Archceologia*  in  the  late  Dr.  Thurnam's  admirable  and  ex- 
haustive paper  on  "  Ancient  British  Barrows,"  from  which  I  am 
tempted  largely  to  borrow.  I  am  also,  through  the  kindness  of 
the  Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  enabled  to  make  use  of 
some  of  the  woodcuts  which  illustrate  Dr.  Thurnam's  paper. 
He  distinguishes  three  types  of  these  instruments,  which,  as  he 
points  out,  correspond  to  some  extent  with  as  many  types  or 
varieties  of  the  bronze  celt.  They  are  as  follows  : — 

I.  That  with  a  simply  flattened  end  or  tang  for  insertion  into 
its  handle. 

II.  That  with  a  well-marked  shoulder,  where  the  stem  and  tang 
unite ;  the  object  being  to  prevent  its   passing  too  far  into  the 
handle. 

III.  That  with  a  regular  stop-ridge,  or  waist,  almost  as  marked 
as  that  in  a  carpenter's  awl,  as  distinguished  from  that  of  a  shoe- 
maker. 

*  Vol.  xliii.  p.  464. 


AWLS   OR   PRICKERS. 


189 


One  of  the  first  type,  from  the  Golden  barrow  at  Upton  Lovel,  is  engraved 
by  Hoare,*  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  223.  With  it  were  two  cups,  a  necklace 
of  amber  beads,  and  a  small  bronze  dagger.  It  is  almost  the  longest  of 
those  found  by  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare,  which  were  upwards  of  thirty  in 
number.  The  only  longer  specimen  was  found  in  a  barrow  near  Lake,f 
and  there  also  some  beads  and  a  bronze  dagger  accompanied  the  inter- 
ment. It  is  considerably  thicker  than  Fig.  223,  and  the  tang  for  insertion 
in  the  handle  is  broader  and  flatter.  A  smaller  awl  of  the  same  character 
was  found  in  a  barrow  on  Upton  Lovel 
Down,  |  opened  by  Mr.  Cunnington.  In  this 
instance  there  were  two  interments  in  the 
same  grave,  and  several  flint  celts  and  a 
perforated  stone  battle-axe  were  found,  as 
well  as  numerous  instruments  of  bone,  and 
a  necklace  of  beads  of  jet  or  lignite. 

An  awl  of  this  kind  (3-^  inches)  found, 
with  a  spear-head,  hammer,  knife,  and  gouge 
of  bronze,  at  Thorndon,  Suffolk,  §  most  of 
them  already  described,  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  224. 

Several  such  instruments,  some  of  them 
not  more  than  an  inch  in  length,  were  found 
by  Canon  Green  well  ||  in  his  exploration  of 
the  Yorkshire  barrows.  In  nine  cases  awls 
or  prickers  accompanied  interments  of  un- 
bumt  bodies,  and  in  three  oases  they  were 
found  among  burnt  bones.  In  most  in- 
stances instruments  of  flint  were  found  with 
them.  An  aged  woman  in  a  barrow  on  Lang- 
ton  Wold^f  had  three  bronze  awls  or  prickers, 
as  well  as  an  assemblage  of  bone  instru- 
ments, animal  teeth,  marine  shells,  and 
other  miscellaneous  property,  buried  with 
her.  Dr.  Thurnam  regarded  these  as  drills 
used  with  a  bow,  but  I  think  such  an  use  is 
doubtful.  Some  of  the  awls  from  the  York- 
shire barrows,  instead  of  being  flattened  at 
one  end,  are  drawn  down  to  a  point  at  both  ends,  leaving  the  middle  of 
larger  diameter  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  shoulder.  These,  I  presume,  are 
included  under  Dr.  Thurnam's  Type  II.  Sometimes  this  central  part  of 
the  blade  is  square  and  sometimes  the  tang  is  square,  like  that  described 
by  Stukeley**  from  a  barrow  near  Stonehenge  as  "  a  sharp  bodkin  round 
at  one  end,  square  at  the  other  where  it  went  into  a  handle." 

An  awl,  square  at  the  centre,  and  round  at  each  end  in  section,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  225.  It  was  found  by  Canon  Greenwell  in  a  barrow  at  Butter- 
wick,  Yorkshire,  in  company  with  the  celt  (Fig.  2),  and  other  objects. 
The  point  has  unfortunately  been  broken  off. 

A  typical  example  of  Dr.  Thurnam's  second  class  from  a  barrow  at 


Fig.  223.      Fig. 


Fig. 
Upton 
Lovel. 


Butter- 
wick,    i 


Vol.  i.  p.  99,  pi.  xi.     The  cut  is  from  the  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  466. 
f  PI.  xxx.  3.  J  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  122,  pi.  iv.  5. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3.  ||  "  British  Barrows,"  passim. 

Op.  cit.,  p.  138.  «*  "  Stonehenge,"  p.  45,  pi.  xxxii. 


§ 

IT 


190  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS.        [CHAP.  VII. 

Bulford,*  Wilts,  is  shown  in  Fig.  226.  Another  was  found  at  Beckhamp- 
ton,  and  a  small  pricker  of  the  same  type  was  found  with  a  burnt  inter- 
ment at  Storrington,f  Sussex.  Like  those  found  by  Sir  R.  C.  Hoare,  this 
was  regarded  as  the  pin  for  fastening  the  cloth  in  which  the  bones  were 
collected  from  the  funeral  pyre.  The  fact  of  several  of  them  having  been 
found  still  inserted  in  their  hafts,  as  will  subsequently  be  seen,  will 
suffice  to  prove  that  this  view  is  mistaken. 

Several  awls  pointed  at  both  ends  were  found  by  the  late  Mr.  Bateman 
during  his  researches  in  the  Derbyshire  barrows.     In  Waggon  Low  J  at 
the  right  shoulder  of  a  contracted  skeleton  were  three  instruments  of 
flint,  and  a  small  bronze  awl  1£  inches  long,  tapering  each  way  from  the 
middle,  which  is  square.     Another,  pointed  at  each 
end,  lay  with  a  drinking  cup  and  a  rude  spear-  or 
arrow-head  of  flint  near  the  shoulder  of  a  youthful 
skeleton  in  a  barrow  near  Minning  Low.§     Another 
of  the  same  kind  was  found  in  a  barrow  on  Ham 
Moor,  ||  Staffordshire.     Another  was  found  with  cal- 
cined bones  in  a  barrow  in  Larks-Low,  ^f  Middleton. 
In  several  instances  there  were  traces  of  a  wooden 
handle,  as  was  the  case  with  one,    upwards  of  3 
inches  long,  which  was  found  with  a  flint   spear- 
head,   a  double-edged  axe  of  basaltic  stone,   and 
objects  of  bone,    among  the   calcined  bones  in  a 
sepulchral  urn  from  a  barrow  at  Throwley.** 

In  a  barrow  at  Haddon  Field  ff  there  was  a  small 
drinking  cup  near  the  back  of  a  contracted  skeleton, 
Fig.  226.        Kg.  227.      and  beneath  this  an  arrow-head  of  flint,  an  instru- 
ford.  i    W^ttoke>uri  ment  of  stag's-horn  like  a  netting  mesh,  and  a  bronze 

awl  showing  traces  of  its  wooden  handle. 

In  another  barrow  near  Grotam,  Nottinghamshire,  JJ  there  lay  near  the 
thigh  of  a  contracted  skeleton  a  neatly  chipped  spear-head  of  flint,  and  a 
small  bronze  pin  which  had  been  inserted  into  a  wooden  handle. 

In  a  barrow  near  Fimber,§§  Yorkshire,  opened  by  Messrs.  Mortimer, 
there  were  found  near  the  knee  of  a  contracted  female  skeleton  a  knife- 
like  chipped  flint  and  the  point  of  a  bronze  pricker  or  awl.  With 
another  female  interment  in  the  same  barrow  a  bronze  pricker  was  found 
inserted  in  a  short  wooden  haft.  The  Britoness  in  this  instance  wore  a 
necklace  of  jet  discs  with  a  triangular  pendant  of  the  same  material. 

A  bronze,  pin,  1J  inches  long,  accompanied  by  a  broken  flint  celt  and 
some  arrow-heads  and  flakes  of  flint,  together  with  calcined  bones,  was 
found  in  an  urn  in  Ravenshill  barrow,  ||  ||  near  Scarborough. 

In  some  of  the  Wiltshire  barrows  more  perfectly  preserved  handles 
have  been  found.  One  of  these,  copied  from  Hoare's  "  Ancient  Wilt- 
shire,"^ is  shown  in  Fig.  227.  It  was  found  in  the  King  barrow  with 
what  was  probably  a  male  skeleton  buried  in  the  hollowed  trunk  of  an 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  465,  fig.  163.  f  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  i.  p.  55. 

I  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  85.  §  "  Vest.  Ant.  of  Derb.,"  p.  41. 

||  "Vest.  Ant.  of  Derb.,"  p.  82.  IT  Smith's  "Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  60,  pi.  xxi.  3. 

**  "  Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  155.  ft  Lib.  cit.,  p.  106. 

H  "Vest.  Ant.  of  Derb.,"  p.  104. 

§§  "  Reliquary,"  vol.  ix.  p.  67. 

HI!  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  3.  f  IT  Vol.  i.  p.  122,  pi.  xv.  No.  3. 


AWLS   USED   IN   SEWING.  191 

elm  tree.  With  it  was  a  curious  urn  of  burnt  clay  and  two  bronze  daggers, 
one  near  the  breast  and  the  other  near  the  thigh.  The  handle  is 
described  as  being  of  ivory,  but  I  think  Dr.  Thurnam  was  right  in  regard- 
ing it  as  of  bone.  The  awl  in  this  instance  is  of  the  third  type,  having  a 
well-marked  collar  round  it.  Another  of  the  same  character,  but  retain- 
ing only  a  small  part  of  the  haft,  so  that  the  shoulder  is  better  shown, 
was  found  with  burnt  bones  in  an  urn  deposited  in  a  barrow  near  Stone- 
henge.*  No  mention  is  made  as  to  the  nature  of  the  material  of  which 
the  haft  was  formed. 

In  the  case  of  an  awl  of  the  first  type,  engraved  by  Dr.  Thurnam,  and 
here  reproduced  as  Fig.  228,  the  handle  is  of  wood,  but  the  kind  of 
wood  is  not  mentioned. 

One  or  two  bronze  or  brass  awls  with  square  shoulders  are  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  f  Several  awls  with  their  original 
wooden  handles  have  been  found  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of 
Savoy,  I  and  others  in  hafts  of  stag's-horn  in  the  Swiss  Lake- 
dwellings. 

Whether  the  twisted  pins  from  the  Wiltshire  barrows 
are  of  the  nature  of  gimlets,  as  suggested  by  Dr. 
Thurnam,  is  a  difficult  question.  I  shall,  however, 
prefer  to  treat  of  them  as  personal  ornaments  rather 
than  as  tools.  It  is  possible  that  they  may  to  some 
extent  have  combined  the  two  functions.  As  to  the 
instruments  which  I  have  been  describing  being  piercing 
tools  or  awls,  there  seems  to  be  little  doubt  ;  and 
Mr.  Bateman  can  hardly  have  been  far  wrong  in  re- 
garding them  as  intended  to  pierce  skins  or  leather. 
Though  not  curved  like  the  cobbler's  awl  of  the  pre- 
sent day,  they  are  probably  early  members  of  the  same 
family.  In  Scandinavia  these  instruments  are  of 
frequent  occurrence,  sometimes  being  provided  with 
ornamental  handles  also  made  of  bronze. §  They  are 
in  that  part  of  Europe  often  found  in  company  with  tweezers  and 
small  knives  of  bronze,  and  all  were  probably  used  together  in 
sewing,  the  hole  being  bored  by  the  awl  and  the  thread  drawn 
through  by  the  tweezers  and,  when  necessary,  cut  with  the  knife. 
Possibly  the  use  of  bristles  as.  substitutes  for  needles  dates  back  to 
very  early  times. 

In  one  instance  at  least  tweezers  have  been  found  in  Britain  in 
company  with  objects  apparently  belonging  to  the  Bronze  Age, 
though  no  doubt  to  a  very  late  part  of  it.  Those  represented  in 

*  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  164,  pi.  xvii.  t  Wilde's  "  Catal.,"  p.  597. 

J  Chantre,  "Alb.,"  pi.  Ixiii. 

$  Worsaae,  "  Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  274,276;  Nilsson,  "  Nordens  Ur.-Invanare,"  figs. 
55,  57. 


192  CHISELS,    GOUGES,    HAMMERS,    AND   OTHER   TOOLS,        [CHAP.  VII. 

Fig.  229  were  discovered  near  Llangwyllog,  *  Anglesea,  together 
with  a  two-edged  razor,  a  bracelet,  buttons,  rings,  &c.,  which  are 
now  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  more  highly  ornamented  pair  of  tweezers,  with  a  broad  end, 
found  with  a  bone  comb,  a  quern,  spindle- whorls,  &c.,  in  a  Picts' 
house  near  Kettleburn,t  Caithness,  belongs  to  a  considerably  later 
period. 

The  needles  of  bronze  found  in  the  British  Isles  do  not  as  a  rule 
appear  to  belong  to  the  Bronze  Period,  though  some  of  those  found 
on  the  Continent  seem  to  date  back  to  that  age.  Two  are  engraved 
by  Wilde,  +  and  there  are  altogether  eighteen  such  articles  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy.  A 
broken  specimen  (1J  inch)  from  the  sand- 
hills near  Glenluce,§  Wigtonshire,  has  been 
figured. 

Another  useful  article  anciently  formed 
of  bronze — though  perhaps  not,  strictly 
speaking,  a  tool — may  as  well  be  men- 
tioned in  this  place ;  I  mean  the  fish- 
hook, of  which,  however,  I  am  able  to  cite 
but  one  example  as  having  been  found  in 
the  British  Isles.  This  was  found  in  Ireland, 
and  is  shown  in  Fig.  230,11  kindly  lent  by 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy. 

Fish-hooks  of  bronze  have  been  found  in 
considerable  abundance  on  the  site  of  several 
of  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings  ;  and  it  is  not 
a  little  remarkable  that  in  form  many  of 
them  are  almost  identical  with  the  steel 

fish-hooks  of  the  present  day.  The  barb,  to  prevent  the  fish 
from  struggling  off  the  hook,  is  in  most  instances  present, 
and  double  hooks  are  occasionally  found.  The  attachment  to  the 
line  was,  even  in  the  single  hooks,  frequently  made  by  a  loop  or 
eye,  formed  by  flattening  and  turning  back  the  upper  part  of  the 
shank  of  the  hook.  Fish-hooks  were  found  in  the  Fonderie  de 
Larnaud  (Jura),1J  and  in  the  hoard  of  St.  Pierre-en-Chatre  (Oise). 
Such  are  the  principal  forms  of  tools  and  instruments  of  bronze 
found  in  these  islands.  Some  of  them,  such  as  the  socketed  gouges, 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74. 

t  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  266 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  218. 

t  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  547.  §  "Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,"  vol.  ii.  p.  14. 

H  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  fig.  403.     IF  Chantre, "  Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.  p.  87. 


MOSTLY  OF  LATE  DATE.  193 

hammers,  and  chisels,  can  only  belong  to  the  latter  part  of  the 
Bronze  Period,  when  the  art  of  using  cores  in  order  to  produce 
sockets  or  other  hollow  recesses  in  castings  was  well  known. 
Others,  like  the  simple  awls  so  frequently  found  in  company 
with  instruments  of  flint  in  our  barrows,  appear  to  extend  from 
the  commencement  of  the  Bronze  Age  to  its  close. 

There  still  remains  to  be  described  a  class  of  instruments  in 
use  by  the  husbandman,  and  not  by  the  warrior ;  and  as  the 
present  chapter  has  extended  to  such  a  length,  it  will  be  well  to 
treat  of  these  under  a  separate  heading. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

SICKLES. 

SICKLES  are  the  only  undoubtedly  agricultural  implements  in 
bronze  with  which  we  are  acquainted  in  this  country.  Already 
in  the  Stone  Period  the  cultivation  of  cereals  for  food  appears  to 
have  been  practised,  and  I  have  elsewhere*  pointed  out  a  form  of 
flint  instrument  which  may  possibly  have  supplied  the  place  of 
sickles  or  reaping  hooks  in  those  early  times.  The  rarity  of 
bronze  sickles  in  this  country,  as  compared  with  their  abundance 
in  some  parts  of  Southern  Europe,  is,  however,  somewhat  striking, 
and  may,  perhaps,  point  to  a  considerably  less  cultivation  of  grain 
crops  in  Britain  than  in  countries  with  a  wanner  climate,  while 
the  inhabitants  were  otherwise  in  much  the  same  stage  of  civilisa- 
tion. 

The  traditions  of  the  use  of  bronze  sickles  survived  to  a  com- 
paratively late  period  in  Greece  and  Italy,  and  Medea  is  described 
by  Sophoclesf  as  cutting  her  magic  herbs  with  such  instruments 
(Xa\Areoi<7ii>  rf/jui  cpeTravois  rojuav),  and  by  Ovid  +  as  doing  it 
"  curvamine  falcis  ahenae."  Elissa  is  by  Virgil  §  represented  as 
using  a  bronze  sickle  for  similar  purposes — 

"  Falcibus  et  messee  ad  lunam  quzeruntur  aenis 
Pubentes  lierbse  nigri  cum  lacte  veneni." 

When  bronze  sickles  were  used  for  reaping  corn  it  seems  to  have 
been  a  common  custom  merely  to  cut  the  ears  of  corn  from  off  the 
straw,  after  the  manner  of  the  Gaulish  reaping  machine  described 
by  Pliny,  ||  and  not  to  cut  and  carry  away  straw  and  ear  together 
from  the  field.  This  practice  will  probably  account  for  the  small 
size  of  the  sickles  which  have  come  down  to  us,  unless  we  are  to 
reverse  the  argument,  and  derive  the  custom  of  cutting  off  the 

*  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  320.  t  Macrob.  "Saturn.,"  v.  c.  19. 

J  "  Met.,"  vii.  224.  §  "  JEn.,"  lib.  iv.  513. 

||  "Nat.  Hist.,"  xviii.c.  30. 


METHOD   OF    HAFTTNG    SICKLES.  195 

ears  only  from  the  diminutive  size  of  the  instruments  employed 
for  reaping. 

Bronze  sickles  were  hafted  in  different  ways,  sometimes  being 
fastened  to  the  handle  by  a  pin,  either  attached  to  the  stem  of 
the  blade  or  passing  through  a  hole  in  it,  combined  with  some 
system  of  binding  ;  and  sometimes  being  provided  with  a  socket 
into  which  the  haft  was  driven,  and  then  secured  by  a  transverse 
pin  or  rivet. 

The  sickles  with  a  socket  to  receive  the  handle  appear  to  be 
peculiar  to  Britain  and  the  North  of  France.  The  other  form 
occurs  over  the  greater  part  of  Europe,  including  Scandinavia,  and 
the  blades,  as  has  been  observed  by  Dr.  Keller,  are  always 
adapted  for  use  in  the  right  hand.  Dr.  Gross,  of  Neuveville,  on 
the  Lake  of  Bienne,  has  been  so  fortunate  as  to  discover  at 
Mcerigen,  the  site  of  one  of  the  ancient  pile-villages  on  the  lake, 
two  or  three  handles  for  sickles  of  this  kind.  A  figure  showing 
three  views  of  one  of  these  handles  has  been  published  by  the 
Royal  Archaeological  Institute,*  and  is  here  by  permission  repro- 
duced as  Fig.  231.  This  handle  is  formed  of  yew,  curiously 
carved  so  as  to  receive  the  thumb  and  fingers,  and  has  a  flat  place 
at  the  end  against  which  the  blade  was  fastened.  In  this  place 
there  are  two  grooves  to  receive  the  slightly  projecting  ribs  with 
which  the  stem  of  the  sickle-blade  is  usually  strengthened.  Dr. 
Kellert  has  suggested  that  the  blade  of  the  sickle  was  made  fast 
to  the  handle  by  means  of  a  kind  of  ferrule  which  passed  over  it, 
and  was  secured  in  its  place  by  two  pins  or  nails. 

The  end  of  the  handle  forms  a  ridge,  through  which  are  two 
holes  that  would  admit  a  small  cord  for  the  suspension  of  the 
sickle,  and  thus  prevent  its  being  lost  either  on  land  or  water. 
We  find  this  sailor-like  habit  prevailing  among  the  Lake-dwellers 
in  the  case  of  their  flint  knives  also,  the  handles  of  which  were 
often  perforated. 

There  is  a  remarkable  resemblance  in  character  between  this 
handle  and  some  of  those  in  use  among  the  Esquimaux  +  for  their 
planes  and  knives,  which  are  recessed  in  the  same  manner  for  the 
reception  of  the  fingers  and  the  thumb. 

Some  iron  sickles,  of  nearly  the  same  form  as  those  in  bronze 
with  the  flat  stem,  were  present  in  the  great  Danish  find  of  the 
Early  Iron  Age  at  Vimose,  §  described  by  Mr.  C.  Engelhardt.  The 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  192.  f  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  vii.  1. 

I  See  Lubbock's  '<  Preh.  Times,"  p.  513.  \  "  Vimose  Fundet,"  1869,  p.  26, 

o2 


196 


SICKLES 


[CHAP.  VHI. 


chord  of  the  curved  blades  is  from  6  to  7  inches  in  length,  and 
one  of  the  instruments  still  retained  its  original  wooden  handle. 
This  is  between  9  and  10  inches  long,  and  is  curved  at  the  part 
intended  to  receive  the  hand.  The  end  is  conical,  like  the  head 


Fig.  231. — Three  views  of  a  handle  for  a  sickle,  Moerigen. 

of  a  screw,  and  is  evidently  thus  made  in  order  to  give  a  secure 
hold  to  the  reaper  when  drawing  the  sickle  towards  him.  Sickles 
with  nearly  similar  handles  were  in  use  in  Smaaland,*  in  the  South 
of  Sweden,  until  recent  days. 

*  "  Aarboger  for  Oldkynd.,"  1867,  p.  250. 


AV1TH    PROJECTING    KNOBS. 


197 


Of  sickles  without  a  socket  but  few  have  been  found  in  Britain, 
and  those  mostly  in  our  Western  Counties.  In  a  remarkable  hoard 
found  in  a  turbary  at  Edington  Burtle,*  near  Glastonbury,  Somer- 
setshire, were  four  of  these  flat  sickles.  One  of  these  had  never 
been  finished,  but  had  been  left  rough  as  it  came  from  the  mould, 
into  which  the  metal  had  been  run  through  a  channel  near  the 
point  of  the  sickle.  A  projection  still  marks  the  place  where  the 
jet  was  broken  off.  As  will  be  seen  from  Fig.  232,  this  blade  is 


Fig.  232.— Edington  Burtle. 


provided  with  two  projecting  pins  for  the  purpose  of  attaching  it 
to  the  handle.  In  this  respect  it  differs  from  the  sickles  of  the 
ordinary  continental  type,  which,  when  of  this  character,  have 
usually  but  a  single  knob. 

Another  of  the  Edington   sickles  with   a  single   projection  is 


Fig.  233.  -Edington  Burtle. 


shown  in  Fig.  233.  This  blade  is  more  highly  ornamented,  and 
has  a  rib  along  the  middle  in  addition  to  that  along  the  back,  no 
doubt  for  the  purpose  of  increasing  stiffness  while  diminishing 
weight.  Of  the  other  two  sickles  found  at  Edington,  one  is  im-r 
perfect  and  the  other  much  worn.  Both  are  provided  with  the 
two  projecting  pins. 

-Two  other  sickles  found  on  Sparkford  Hill.t  also  in  Somerset- 
shire,, present  the  same  peculiarity.     One  of  these  much  resembles 

.  *  Somerset  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Proc.,  1854,  vol.  v.  p.  91. 
t  Op.  tit.,  1856—7,  vol.  vii.  p.  27. 


198  SICKLES  [CHAP.  vm. 

Fig.  233,  though  nearly  straight  along  the  back.  The  other  is 
flat  on  both  faces.  Each  has  lost  its  point.  A  chisel-like  tool  was 
found  with  them. 

With  the  Edington  sickles  were  found  a  broad  fluted  penannular 
armlet  and  what  may  have  been  a  finger-ring  of  the  same  pattern, 
a  plain  penannular  armlet  of  square  section,  part  of  a  light  funicular 
torque  like  Fig.  467,  part  of  a  ribbon  torque  like  Fig.  469,  and 
four  penannular  rings,  some  of  them  apparently  made  from  frag- 
ments of  torques. 

Two  other  sickles  of  the  same  character,  each  with  two  pro- 
jecting pins,  were  found  in  Taunton  *  itself  in  association  with 
twelve  palstaves,  a  socketed  celt,  a  hammer  (Fig.  214),  a  fragment 
of  a  spear-head,  a  double-edged  knife,  a  funicular  torque  (Fig. 
468),  a  pin  (Fig.  451),  some  fragments  of  other  pins,  and  several 
penannular  rings  of  various  sizes. 


Fig.  234.— Thames. 


All  the  objects  found  at  Edington,  Sparkford  Hill,  and  Taunton 
are  now  in  the  museum  in  Taunton  Castle. 

A  thinner  form  of  flat  sickle,  if  such  it  be,  has  been  found  in 
Kent.  Among  a  number  of  bronze  objects  which  were  discovered 
at  Marden,f  near  Staplehurst,  there  is  a  slightly  curved  blade  with 
a  rivet  at  one  end,  which  appears  to  present  a  sickle-like  character. 
I  have  not  seen  the  original,  and  as  it  is  described  as  a  knife-blade 
it  may  prove  to  have  been  one,  or  possibly,  what  is  of  far  rarer 
occurrence,  a  saw. 

Of  socketed  sickles  a  few  have  at  different  times  been  dredged 
up  from  the  Thames.  One  of  these,  found  in  1859,  is  in  my  own 
collection,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  234.  The  blade,  which  is  almost 
as  sharp  at  the  back  as  at  the  edge,  is  not  quite  central  with  the 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  94.     Pring,  "  Brit,  and  Roman  Taunton,"  pi.  i.  3. 
t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258,  pi.  13,  No.  1. 


WITH   SOCKETS.  199 

socket,  but  so  placed  as  to  make  the  instrument  better  adapted  for 
use  in  the  right  hand  than  in  the  left.  The  socket  tapers  con- 
siderably, and  is  closed  at  the  end. 

In  another  sickle  found  in  the  Thames,  near  Bray,  Berks*  (Fig.  235),  the 
socket  dies  into  the  blade  instead  of  forming  a  distinct  feature.  A  third, 
found  near  Windsor,  and  engraved  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of 
Antiquaries,]  closely  resembles  Fig.  234,  but  the  end  of  the  socket,  instead 
of  being  closed,  is  open.  The  blade  of  this  also  is  sharp  on  both  edges. 

One  from  Stretham  Fen,  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge  Antiquarian 
Society  (about  5£  inches),  is  of  the  same  character.  It  has  two  rivet-holes 
in  the  socket.  Another  from  Downham  Fen  (5£  inches)  is  sharp  on  both 
edges. 

In  the  Norwich  Museum  is  a  sickle  of  somewhat  the  same  character  as 
Fig.  235,  but  the  socket  instead  of  being  oval  is  oblong,  and  is  placed  at  a 
less  angle  to  the  blade,  which  in  this  case  also  is  double-edged.  The 


Fig.  235.-Near  Bray.  i 

socket  is  -H  by  iV  inch,  and  has  one  rivet-hole  through  it.  The  curved 
knife  from  Wicken  Fen,  to  be  described  in  the  next  chapter,  much 
resembles  this  Norwich  example  in  outline.  Another  sickle  from  Nor- 
folk J  was  exhibited  to  the  Archaeological  Institute  in  1851.  Mr.  Franks 
has  shown  me  a  sketch  of  another  found  at  Dereham  which  has  the 
external  edge  of  the  blade  extending  across  the  end  of  the  socket.  Both 
edges  of  the  blade  are  sharp. 

But  few  sickles  have  been  found  in  Scotland.  That  shown  in  Fig.  236 
was  found  in  the  Tay,§  near  Errol,  Perthshire,  in  1840,  and  has  been 
described  by  Dr.  J.  Alexander  Smith.  The  block,  which  has  been  kindly 
lent  me  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,  is  engraved  on  the 
scale  of  two-thirds  linear,  instead  of  my  usual  scale  of  one-half.  The 
main  difference  between  this  specimen,  and  mine  from  the  Thames  (Fig. 

*  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  85.       t  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  95. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  p.  191.  §  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  378. 


200 


SICKLES 


[CHAP.  vin. 


234)  consists  in  the  blade  being  fluted.  Another  more  rudely  made 
sickle,  found  at  Edengerach,*  Premnay,  Aberdeenshire,  has  also  been 
engraved.  This  has  a  single  central  rib  along  the  blade  and  no  rivet- 
hole  through  the  socket.  Perhaps  it  is  an  unfinished  casting. 


Fig.  236.-Near  Errol,  Perthshire. 


In  Sinclair's  "  Statistical  Account  of  Scotland"!  it  is  stated  that  an 
instrument  of  this  class  was  found  at  Ledbeg,  Sutherlandshire,  and  was 
pronounced  by  the  Earl  of  Bristol,  then  Bishop  of  Derry,  to  whom  it 
was  presented,  to  be  a  Druidical  pruning  hook  similar  to  several  found 
in  England. 

In  Ireland  these  instruments  are  much  more  abundant.  Eleven 
specimens  are  mentioned  by  Wilde  +  as  being  in  the  Museum  of 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  and  there  are  three  in  the  British 
Museum,  as  well  as  one  in  that  at  Edinburgh. 

That  engraved  as  Fig.  237  is  in  the 
collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S., 
and  was  found  at  Grarvagh,  county 
Derry.  The  blade  is  fluted  somewhat 
like  that  of  the  Tay  specimen.  In 
one  of  those  engraved  by  Wilde  (Fig. 
405)  it  is  more  highly  ornamented. 
In  another  the  socket  is  not  closed 
at  the  end,  but  resembles  that  of 
the  Windsor  example  already  men- 
tioned. This  appears  to  be  the  one 
engraved  by  Vallancey§  who  ob- 
serves that  it  was  "called  by  the 
Irish  a  Scare,"  and  that  it  was  used 
**to  cut  herbs,  acorns,  misletoe,  &c."  In  another  )|  the  blade  forms 


Fig.  237.— Qarvagh,  Derry 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  376. 
-  'f  Vol.  xvi.  p.  206,  cited  by  Wilson,  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  401, 

t  "  Catal.,"  p.  527. 

§  "  Coll.  de  Reb.  Hib.,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  x.  4,  p.  60. 
.    ||  Fig.  406.     Compare  "  Horse.  Ferales,"  pi.  x.  19. 


FOUND    IN    IRELAND.  201 

a  direct  continuation  of  the  socket  as  in  Fig.  238,  which  is  engraved 
from  a  specimen  in  the  British  Museum,  found  near  Athlone,  county 
Westmeath. 

Vallancey,  in  his  "Collectanea,"  has  figured  another.  In  the  collection 
of  Mr.  J.  Holmes  is  another  example  of  this  type.  Another  sickle 
of  the  same  character  as  Fig.  237,  found  near  Ballygawley,*  Tyrone, 
has  also  been  figured.  This  specimen  is  among  those  in  the  British 
Museum. 

A  socketed  sickle,  double-edged,  and  with  a  concavity  on  each  side  at 
the  angle  between  the  blade  and  the  socket  so  deep  as  to  meet  and  form 
a  hole,  was  found  in  Alderney,  and  is  engraved  in  the  Archceological 
Association  Journal.]  With  it  were  found  socketed  celts,  spear-heads, 


Fig.  238.-Ath]one. 


and  broken  swords  and  daggers.     This  may  be  regarded  as  a  French 
rather  than  an  English  example. 

In  my  own  collection  is  another,  from  the  Seine  at  Paris,  about  7  inches 
in  length  along  the  outer  edge  of  the  blade,  which  extends  past  the  end 
of  the  socket.  This  still  contains  a  part  of  the  wooden  handle,  which  has 
been  secured  in  its  place  by  two  rivets,  apparently  of  bronze.  In  general 
outline  this  sickle  is  much  like  Fig.  234,  but  the  blade  is  narrower  and 
more  curved  and  the  socket  more  flattened.  In  the  museum  at  Amiens 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  186.     See  also  Dublin   Penny  Journ.,  i.  p.    108 ;    "  Horse 
Ferales,"  pi.  x.  18. 
t  Vol.  iii.  p.  9. 


202  SICKLES  [CHAP.  vin. 

is  another  sickle,  in  form  closely  resembling  Fig.  234,  but  with  a  loop  at 
the  back  of  the  socket.  M.  Chantre  in  his  magnificent  work,  "  L'Age 
du  Bronze,"  does  not  specify  this  socketed  type,  though  he  divides  the 
form  without  socket  into  five  different  varieties.  The  socketed  form 
appears  to  be  quite  unknown  in  the  South  of  France,  as  it  also  is  in 
Switzerland. 

These  three  are  the  only  instances  I  can  cite  of  socketed  sickles 
having  been  found  outside  the  British  Isles,  so  that  this  type  of 
instrument  appears  to  be  peculiarly  our  own.  The  existence  of 
a  socket  shows  that  the  form  does  not  belong  to  an  early  period 
in  the  Bronze  Age,  and  the  same  is  to  be  inferred  from  the 
character  of  the  other  bronze  objects  with  which  the  Alderney 
sickle  was  found  associated. 

Inasmuch  as  the  continental  forms  are  as  a  rule  different 
from  the  British,  and  as  they  are,  moreover,  well  known,  it  will 
suffice  to  indicate  some  few  of  the  works  in  which  descriptions  of 
them  will  be  found.  Some  from  Camenz,  in  Saxony,  have  been 
engraved  in  illustration  of  a  paper  by  myself  in  the  Proceedings 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries* 

Others  from  Germany,  some  of  which  are  said  to  have  Roman 
numerals  upon  them,  have  been  figured  by  Lindenschmit.f 

Examples  from  Italy  have  been  given  by  Strobel,+  Gastaldi,  § 
Lindenschmit,||  and  others. 

They  have  been  found  in  great  abundance  in  some  of  the  settle- 
ments on  the  lakes  of  Switzerland  and  Savoy.  It  has  been  thought 
that  the  Lake-dwellers  did  not  cut  off  merely  the  ears  of  their  corn,1[ 
but  "  that  the  straw  was  taken  with  it,  otherwise  there  would  not 
have  been  the  seeds  of  so  many  weeds  in  the  corn."  Diodorus  Siculus, 
however,  who  wrote  in  the  first  century  B.C.,  tells  us  distinctly 
that  the  Britons  gathered  in  their  harvest  by  cutting  off  the  ears 
of  corn  and  storing  them  in  subterraneous  repositories.  From 
these  they  picked  the  oldest  day  by  day  for  their  food.  Whether 
for  threshing  they  made  use  of  the  trihulum**  that  "sharp 
threshing  instrument  having  teeth,"  before  Roman  times,  is  doubt- 
ful ;  but  that  so  primitive  an  instrument,  armed  with  flakes  of 
flint  or  other  stone,  should  have  remained  in  use  in  some  Mediter- 
ranean countries  until  the  present  day,  is  a  remarkable  instance 

*  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  333. 

t  "Samml.  zu  Sigmar.,"  Taf.  xli. ;  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  xii.  Taf.  ii. 

I  "Avanzi  Prerom.,"  1863,  Tav.  ii.6,  7. 

§  "Nuovi  Cenni,"  1862,  Tav.  iv.  17,  18.  ||  "  Samml.  zu  Sigmar.,"  Taf.  xli. 

f  Stevens,  "  Flint  Chips,"  p.  157. 

**  See  Evans,  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  256. 


FOUND   ON   THE    CONTINENT.  203 

of  the  power  of  survival  of  ancient  customs.  Such  an  instance 
of  persistence  in  a  primitive  form  much  reduces  the  extreme  im- 
probability of  the  use  of  bronze  sickles  in  Germany  having  lasted 
until  a  time  when  Roman  numerals  might  appear  upon  them. 
If  every  St.  Andrew's  cross  and  every  straight  line  found  upon 
ancient  instruments  is  to  be  regarded  as  a  Roman  numeral,  and 
the  objects  bearing  them  are  to  be  referred  to  Roman  times  as 
their  earliest  possible  date,  the  range  of  Roman  antiquities  will 
be  much  enlarged,  and  will  be  found  to  contain,  among  other 
objects,  a  large  number  of  the  bronze  knives  from  the  Swiss 
Lake-dwellings  ;  for  one  of  the  most  common  ornaments  on 
the  backs  of  these  knives  consists  of  a  repetition  of  the  pattern 

XIIIIIXIIIIIXIIIII 

Even  were  it  proved  that  in  some  part  of  Europe  the  use  of 
bronze  sickles  survived  to  so  late  a  date  as  supposed  by  Dr.  Lin- 
denschmit,  their  great  scarcity  in  the  British  Isles  affords  a  conclu- 
sive argument  against  their  being  assigned  to  the  period  of  the 
Roman  occupation,  of  which  other  remains  have  come  down  to  us 
in  such  abundance. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
KNIVES,  EAZORS,  ETC. 

IT  Is  a  question  whether,  if  in  this  work  strict  regard  had  been  paid 
to  the  development  of  different  forms  of  cutting  implements,  the 
knife  ought  not  to  have  occupied  the  first  place,  rather  than  the 
hatchet  or  celt ;  for  when  bronze  was  first  employed  for  cutting 
purposes  it  was  no  doubt  extremely  scarce,  and  would  therefore 
hardly  have  been  available  for  any  but  the  smaller  kinds  of  tools 
and  weapons. 

Both  hatchets  and  knives,  or  rather  knife-daggers,  have  been 
found  with  interments  in  barrows  ;  but  it  seems  better  to  include 
the  majority  of  the  latter  class  of  instruments,  which  appear  to 
occupy  an  intermediate  place  between  tools  and  weapons,  in  the 
next  chapter,  which  treats  of  daggers;  rather  than  in  this,  which  will 


Fig.  239.— Wicken  Fen. 


be  devoted  to  what  appear  to  be  forms  of  tools  and  implements. 
Some  of  these,  however,  like  the  celt  or  hatchet,  may  have  been 
equally  available  both  for  peaceful  and  warlike  uses  ;  and  though 
I  have  to  some  extent  tried  to  keep  tools  and  weapons  under 
different  headings,  it  appears  impossible  completely  to  carry  out 
any  such  system  of  arrangement.  Nor  in  treating  of  what  I  have 
regarded  as  knives  does  it  seem  convenient  first  to  describe  what 
appear  to  be  the  simpler  and  older  forms,  inasmuch  as  there  are 
other  forms  which  in  all  respects  except  the  shape  of  the  blade  so 
closely  resemble  some  of  the  socketed  sickles  described  in  the  last 
chapter,  that  they  seem  almost  of  necessity  to  follow  immediately 


SOCKET KD   KIS'lVES. 


205 


in  order.  The  first  instrument  which  I  shall  cite  has  sometimes 
indeed  been  regarded  as  a  sickle,  though  it  is  more  properly 
speaking  a  curved  knife. 

It  was  found  in  Wick  en  Fen,  and  is  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge 
Antiquarian  Society,  the  Council  of  which  has 
kindly  permitted  me  to  engrave  it  as  Fig.  239. 
It  has  already  been  figured,  but  not  quite  accu- 
rately, in  the  Arcliceological  Journal,*  the  rib  at 
the  back  of  the  blade  being  omitted.  I  am  not 
aware  of  any  other  example  of  this  form  of 
knife  having  been  found  in  the  United  Kingdom, 
but  a  double-edged  socketed  knife  with  a  curved 
blade,  found  in  Ireland,  is  in  the  Bateman  Col- 
lection. 

The  ordinary  form  of  socketed  knife  has 
a  straight  double-edged  blade,  extending 
from  an  oval  or  oblong  socket,  pierced  by 
one  or  two  holes,  through  which  rivets  or 
pins  could  pass  to  secure  the  haft.  These 
holes  are  usually  at  right  angles  to  the  axis 
of  the  blade,  but  sometimes  in  the  same 
plane  with  it. 

Fig.  240  shows  a  knife  with  two  rivet-holes, 
which  was  found  at  Thorndon,  Suffolk,  together 
with  socketed  celts,  a  spear-head,  hammer, 
gouge,  and  an  awl,  several  of  which  have  been 
figured  in  preceding  pages.  Another  (9  inches 
long),  much  like  Fig.  240,  but  with  the  sides  of 
the  socket  flat,  and  the  blade  more  fluted,  was 
found  in  the  Thames,  and  is  engraved  in  the 
Archaological  Journal.]  Another,  of  much  the 
same  size  and  general  character,  formed  part  of 
a  hoard  of  bronze  objects  found  in  Eeach  Fen, 
near  Burwell,  of  which  mention  has  already  fre- 
quently been  made.  It  is  in  my  own  collection, 

and  is   shown   in   Fig.   241.     I   have   another,        rig.  240.—        Fig.  241.— 
6£  inches  long,  found  in  Edmonton  Marsh.  Thorndon.  j    Beach  Fen.  \ 

A  fine  blade  of  this  kind,  with  two  rivet-holes 

in  the  hilt  (14£  inches),  was  found  in  the  New  Forest,  Glamorganshire, 
and  was  formerly  in  the  Meyrick  Collection. £  It  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  The  blade  has  shallow  flutings  paraUel  with  the  edges. 

A  socketed  knife  of  this  kind  (4£  inches)  was  found  by  General  A. 
PittEivers,  F.E.S.,  in  a  pit  at  the  foot  of  the  interior  slope  of  the  rampart 
of  Highdown  Camp,§  near  Worthing,  Sussex.  It  may  possibly  have 
accompanied  a  funereal  deposit. 


*  Vol.  vii.  p.  302. 

£  "Anc.  Armour,"  pi.  xlvii.  11. 


t  Vol.  xxxiv.  p.  301. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xlii.  p.  75,  pi.  viii. 


206 


KXIYES,    RAZORS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


In  some  instances  the  two  rivet-holes  run  lengthways  of  the  oval  of  the 
socket.  One  such,  discovered  with  other  objects  at  Lanant,  Cornwall 
(8J  inches),  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia.*  It  is  now  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  One  like  it  was  found  on  Holyhead  Moun- 
tain,! Anglesea,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  fragment  of  a  knife  of  this  kind  is  in  the  museum  at  Amiens,  and 
formed  part  of  a  hoard  found  near  that  town.     It  has  a  beading  at  the 
mouth  of  the  socket,  and  also  one  about 
midway  between  the  rivet-holes. 

Commonly  there  is  but  a  single 
hole  through  the  socket,  especially  in 
the  smaller  specimens.  That  shown 
in  Fig.  242  is  of  this  kind,  but  pre- 
sents the  remarkable  feature  of  hav- 
ing upon  each  face  of  the  socket  six 
small  projecting  bosses  simulating 
rivet-heads.  It  was  found  in  the 
Heathery  Burn  Cave,*  Durham,  with 
socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  and  nu- 
merous other  articles.  Another  from 
the  same  cave  (5|  inches)  with  a 
plain  and  rather  larger  socket  is  in 
the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.& 

Of  other  specimens,  but  without  the 
small  bosses,  the  following  may  be  men- 
tioned :  —  One  (6£  inches  long)  found  with 
socketed  celts,  part  of  a  sword  blade, 
and  a  gouge,  at  Martlesham,  Suffolk, 
and  in  the  possession  of  Captain  Brooke, 
of  Ufford  Hall.  Two  found  in  the 
Thames  near  Wallingford.§  Another  (5f 
inches),  from  the  same  source,  in  my 
own  collection.  This  was  found  with  a 
socketed  celt,  gouge,  chisel,  and  razor 
(Fig.  269).  One  from  Llandysilio,  Den- 
bighshire, found  with  socketed  celts  and 
a  spear-head,  is  in  Canon  Greenwell'  s 
collection.  A  knife  of  this  kind  was 
among  the  relics  found  above  the  stalag- 
mite in  Kent's  Cavern,  near  Torquay. 
I  have  a  knife  of  this  character  (4f  inches),  but  with  the  rivet-hole  in  a 
line  with  the  edges  of  the  blade,  found  in  Dorsetshire. 

*  Vol.  xv.  p.  118,  pi.  ii.  ;  "  Catal.  Mus.  Soc.  Ant.,"  p.  16. 
•f  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  254. 

J  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  359.  This  cut  is 
lent  by  the  Society.  §  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  303. 


Burn  Cave.   * 


Fe' 


SCOTTISH    AND    IRISH    KNIVES. 


207 


In  Scotland  the  socketed  form  of  knife  is  very  rare. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  243  was  found  at  Kilgraston,  Perthshire,  and  is  in 
the  collection  of  Canon  Gbreenwell,  F.B.S.  It  has  a  central  rib  along  the 
blade  and  two  shorter  lateral  ribs,  and  in  some  respects  has  more  the 
appearance  of  being  a  spear-head  than  a  knife. 

Another,  with  the  rivet-hole  in  the  same  plane  as  the  blade,  was  found 
near  Campbelton,  Argyleshire,  and  has  been  engraved  as  a  spear-head  by 
Professor  Daniel  Wilson.*  The  discovery  of  a  blade  having  its  original 
handle,  as  subsequently  mentioned,  proves,  however,  that  some  of  these 
are  rightly  regarded  as  knives,  though  another  form  (Fig.  328)  has  more 
the  appearance  of  being  a  spear-head.  The  curved  knife  with  a  socket, 
figured  by  the  same  author,  f  can  hardly,  I  think,  be  Scottish. 

In  Ireland  the  socketed  form  of  knife  is  more  abundant  than  in 
either  England  or  Scotland.  No  less  than  thirty-three  such  knives* 
are  recorded  by  Sir  W.  Wilde,  as  preserved  in 
the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  of  five 
of  which  he  gives  figures.  Many  specimens  also 
exist  in  private  collections. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  244  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  and  was  found  at  Kells,  Co. 
Meath.  As  will  be  observed,  the  blade  is  at  the  base 
somewhat  wider  than  the  socket.  The  indented  lines 
upon  it  appear  to  have  been  produced  in  the  cast- 
ing, and  not  added  by  any  subsequent  process.  A 
knife  of  the  same  kind,  found  in  the  Bog  of  Augh- 
rane,  near  Athleague,  Co.  Galway,  is  still  attached 
to  the  original  handle,  which,  like  many  of  those  of 
the  flint  knives  found  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings, 
is  formed  of  yew.  It  has  been  several  times  figured.  § 

I  have  a  specimen  of  the  same  character,  but  in 
outline  more  like  Fig.  240,  6  inches  long,  from  the 
North  of  Ireland. 

A  knife  of  this  kind,  found  in  a  hoard  at  St.  Ge- 
noulph,  is  in  the  Tours  Museum. 

In  some  instances  the  junction  between  the  blade  and  the  socket 
is  made  to  resemble  that  between  the  hilt  and  blade  of  some  of  the 
bronze  swords  and  daggers,  such  as  Figs.  291  and  349. 

The  example  shown  in  Fig.  245  is  in  my  own  collection.  I  do  not, 
however,  know  in  what  part  of  Ireland  it  was  found.  The  rivet-hole  is 
at  the  side,  and  not  on  the  face,  in  which,  however,  there  is  a  slight  flaw, 
which  assumes  the  appearance  of  a  hole  in  the  figure.  In  Canon  Green- 
well's  collection  is  a  nearly  similar  specimen  (lOf  inches),  found  at  Balte- 
ragh,  Co.  Derry,  with  two  rivet-holes  at  the  side  and  the  socket  some- 
what ornamented  by  parallel  grooves  at  the  mouth  and  at  the  junction 
with  the  blade. 

*  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  390.        t  Op.  eit.,  p.  402.        J  "  Catal.,"  p.  465. 
§  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  350;  Arch.,  yol.  *xxyir  p.  330;  "Hora»  Ferales,"  pi.  x.  29. 


Fig.  244.— Kells. 


208 


KNIVES,    RAZORS,  ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


One  of  the  socketed  knives  in  the  Academy  Museum  at  Dublin  has  two 
rivet-holes  on  the  face.  Of  the  others,  about 
two-thirds  have  a  single  rivet-hole  on  the  face, 
and  the  other  third  one  on  the  side. 

A  long  blade,  somewhat  differing  in  its  details 
from  Fig.  245,  was  found  between  Lurgan  and 
Moira,  Co.  Down,  and,  it  is  stated,  in  company 
with  the  bronze  hilt  or  pommel  shown  in  Fig. 
246.  These  objects  formed  part  of  the  Wilshe 
Collection,  and  are  now  in  the  Museum  of  the 
Royal  Irish  Academy.  Two  objects,  somewhat 
similar  to  Fig.  246,  found  with  spear -heads  in 
Cambridgeshire,  will  subsequently  be  mentioned. 
A  piece  of  bronze  of  much  the  same  form,  found 
with  a  hoard  of  bronze  objects  at  Marden,*  in 
Kent,  seems  to  be  a  jet  or  waste  piece  from  a 
casting.  It  has,  however,  been  regarded  as  part 
of  a  fibula. 

The  socketed  form  of  knife  is  hardly  known 
upon  the  Continent,  though,  as  will  have  been 
observed,  it  has  occasionally  been  found  in  the 
North  of  France.  Among  the  fragments  of 
metal  forming  part  of  the  deposit  of  an  ancient 
bronze-founder,  and  discovered  at  Dreuil,  near 
Amiens,  I  have  the  fragments  of  two  such 
knives.  I  have  also  a  fine  and  entire  specimen, 
9£  inches  long,  from  the  bed  of  the  Seine  at 
Charenton,  near  Paris.  There  is  a  transverse 
rib  at  each  end  and  in  the  middle  of  the  socket, 
through  the  face  of  which  are  two  rivet-holes. 
A  portion  of  the  original  wooden  handle  is  still 
in  the  socket,  secured  in  its  place  by  two  pins, 
also  apparently  of  wood,  which  pass  through  the 
rivet-holes.  Another  knife  (6$  inches),  like 
Fig.  241,  but  with  only  one  rivet-hole,  was  also 
found  in  the  Seine  at  Paris,  and  is  now  in  my 
collection. 

Several  socketed  knives  with  curved  blades 
have  been  found  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings, 
and  one  such,  found  with  the  sickle  already 
mentioned,  is  in  the  Amiens  Museum. 

There  is  another  form  of  socketed  knife 
which  it  will  be  well  here  to  mention.  The 
blade  is  sharp  on  both  sides,  but  instead 
of  being  flat  it  is  curved  into  a  semicircle. 
Fig.245.-ireiana.  *  For  a  typical  example  I  am  obliged  to  have 
recourse  to  a  French  specimen. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  247  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was  found  with  a 
*  Arch.  As&oc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258. 


CURVED   KNIVES. 


209 


gold  torque  and  bracelet,  a  bronze  anvil  (Fig.  217),  and  other  objects,  at 
Fresne  la  Mere,  near  Falaise,  Calvados.  It  seems  well  adapted  for 
working  out  hollows  in  wood.  With  it  was  found  a  small,  tanged,  single- 
edged  knife,  the  end  of  which  is  bent  to  a  smaller  curve. 

An  instrument  of  much  the   same   character  (4   inches)  was  found, 
with  a  bronze  sword,  spear-heads,  &c.,  in  the  Island  of  Skye,  and  is  now 


Fig.  246.— Moira. 


Fig.  247.— Fresne  la  Mere. 


in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh.  As  Professor  Daniel  Wilson* 
observes,  "in  general  appearance  it  resembles  a  bent  spear-head,  but  it 
has  a  raised  central  ridge  on  the  inside,  while  it  is  nearly  plain  and 
smooth  on  the  outer  side. — The  most  probable  use  for  which  it  has  been 
designed  would  seem  to  be  for  scraping  out  the  interior  of  canoes  and 
other  large  vessels  made  from  the  trunk  of  the  oak."  It  is  shown  as 
Fig.  248.  Another  instrument  of  the  same  kind  (4i  inches),  found  at 
Wester  Ord,  Invergordon,  Eoss-shire,  is  engraved  in  the  Proceedings  of  the 


Fig.  248.-Skye. 


Fig.  249.— Wester  Ord. 


Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,]  and  is  here  by  their  permission  repro- 
duced as  Fig.  249. 

It  seems  by  no  means  improbable  that  such  instruments  may  have  been 

*  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  400  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  viii.  p.  310.     The  cut  is 
here  reproduced  by  permission  of  Messrs.  Macmillan. 
t  Vol.  viii.  p.  310. 


210 


KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


mistaken  for  bent  spear-heads,  and  that  they  are  not  quite  so  rare  as  would 
at  present  appear. 

Two  specimens  of  the  socketed  form  have  been  found  in  the  Lake  settle- 
ment of  the  Eaux  Vives,  near  Geneva,  and  are  now  in  the  museum  of 
that  town.  Another,  with  a  tang,  is  in  the  collection  of  M.  For  el,  of 
Morges,  and  was  found  among  the  pile-dwellings  near  that  place. 

A  fragment  of  what  appears  to  have  been  one  of  these  curved  knives, 
but  with  a  solid  handle,  and  not  a  socket,  was  found  with  gouges  and 

various  fragments  at  Houn- 
slow,  and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum. 

What  seems  to  be  a 
tanged  curved  knife  of  this 
kind  formed  part  of  the 
great  Bologna  hoard. 

Another  form  of 
knife,  which  appears  to 
be  intermediate  between 
those  with  sockets  and 
those  with  merely  a  flat 
tang,  is  shown  in  Fig. 
250.  In  this  there  are 
loops  extending  across 
the  blade  on  either  side, 
which  would  receive  the 
ends  of  the  two  pieces  of 
wood  or  horn  destined 
to  form  the  handle,  so 
that  a  single  rivet  suf- 
ficed to  bind  them  and 
the  blade  between  them 
firmly  together. 

The  original  was  found 
in  Reach  Fen,  Cambridge- 
shire, and  is  now  in  my 
own  collection.  The  blade 
has  the  appearance  of  having  been  originally  longer,  but  of  being  now 
worn  away  by  use.  I  know  of  no  other  specimen  of  the  kind.  The 
power  to  cast  such  loops  upon  the  blade  is  a  proof  of  no  ordinary  skill 
in  the  founder. 

A  palstave  with  a  loop  of  this  kind  instead  of  a  stop  or  side-flanges 
was  found  at  Donsard,*  Haute  Savoie. 

Another  form  of  knife  or  dagger  has  merely  a  flat  tang,  in  some 

*  Chantre,  "Album,"  pi.  vi.  2. 


Fig.  250. -Reach  Fen. 


KNIVES   WITH    BROAD    TANGS.  211 

cases  provided  with  rivets  by  which  it  could  be  fastened  to  a 
handle,  in  others  without  rivets,  as  if  it  had  been  simply  driven 
into  a  handle. 

The  blade  shown  in  Fig.  251  was  found  in  the  same  hoard  as  that 
engraved  as  Fig.  241.  The  rivets  are  fast  attached  to  the  blade,  and 
the  handle  through  which  they  passed  was  probably  of  some  perishable 
material,  such  as  wood,  horn,  or  bone. 

Another  blade  (5£  inches),  with  a  broad  tang  and  two  rivet-holes,  was 
found  in  the  Thames.* 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  knife  much  like  the  figure,  8  inches  long, 
and  showing  three  facets  on  the  blade,  found  in  the  Thames  at  Kingston. 

The  knife-blades  with  broad  tangs,  which  were  not  riveted  to 
their  handles,  were  in  some  instances  provided  with  a  central 
ridge  upon  the  tang,  which  served  to  steady  them  in  their  handles, 
and  in  others  the  stem  or  tang  was  left  plain. 

One  of  the  former  class,  from  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  252.  It  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Grreenwell,  F.E.S. 

An  imperfect  knife  of  the  same  kind,  found  in  Yorkshire,  is  in  the 
Scarborough  Museum. 

Another,  with  the  edges  more  ogival,  like  Fig.  241,  was  found  in  the 
neighbourhood  of  Nottingham,!  with  socketed  celts  and  numerous  other 
objects  in  bronze. 

Another,  broader  at  the  base  and  more  like  a  dagger  in  character,  was 
found  with  various  other  articles  at  Marden,^:  Kent. 

More  leaf-shaped  and  sharply  pointed  blades  of  this  kind,  probably 
daggers  rather  than  knives,  have  been  often  found  in  Ireland.  One  § 
(10^  inches)  has  been  figured  by  "Wilde.  Another  was  in  the  Dowris 
hoard. 

In  the  Isle  of  Harty  hoard,  already  more  than  once  cited,  was  a  knife 
with  a  plain  tang,  shown  in  Fig.  253.  It  has  rather  the  appearance  of 
having  been  made  from  the  point  of  a  broken  sword,  as  the  edges  of  the 
tang  have  been  "upset"  by  hammering.  The  blade  itself  is  now 
narrower  than  the  tang,  the  result  probably  of  much  wear  and  use. 

The  end  of  a  broken  sword  in  the  Dowris  hoard  has  been  converted 
into  a  knife  in  a  similar  manner.  In  the  collection  of  the  late  Lord 
Braybrooke  is  what  appears  to  be  part  of  a  tanged  knife,  sharpened  at 
the  broken  end  so  as  to  form  a  chisel. 

In  the  Eeach  Fen  hoard  was  a  knife  (4£  inches)  of  much  the  same 
character,  but  not  so  broad  in  the  tang. 

A  flat  blade  with  a  tang  for  insertion  in  a  haft  must  have  been  a  very 
early  form  of  metal  tool.  Among  the  Assyrian  relics  from  Tel  Sifr,  in 
South  Babylonia,  such  blades  were  found,  of  which  there  are  examples  in 
the  British  Museum. 

Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S. ,  has  two  leaf -shaped  blades  of  copper,  with 
tangs  set  in  handles  of  bone  rather  longer  than  the  blades,  which  were 
lately  in  use  among  the  Esquimaux.  In  form  they  resemble  Fig.  257. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  229.     f  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  332. 
I  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258.       §  "Catal.,"  p.  467,  fig.  355. 

p2 


212  KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC.  [CHAP.   IX. 

It  will  now  be  well  to  mention  some  of  the  other  Irish  speci- 
mens of  this  class. 

The  knives  with  the  projecting  rib  upon  the  tang  are  hy  no  means 
uncommon,  and  there  are  several  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy  and  elsewhere.  Canon  Greenwell  has  one  (6|  inches)  from 


Fig.  252.— Heathery  Burn  Cave.        i       Fig.  253.— Harty.       $  Fig.  254.— Ireland.          £ 

Ballynascreen,  Co.  Tyrone,  much  like  that  from  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave 
(Fig.  252). 

The  knife  or  dagger  with  a  plain  tang  and  an  ornamented  "blade 
engraved  as  Fig.  254  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy. 
Another,  simply  ridged  and  with  a  single  rivet-hole  in  the  tang,  found  at 
Craigs,*  Co.  Antrim,  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  E.  Day,  F.S.A.  It  is  less 
round-ended  than  the  hlade  with  a  central  rib  along  it  and  one  rivet-hole 
in  the  tang,  shown  in  Fig.  255.  This  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was 
found  at  Ballyclare,  Co.  Antrim. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  269  (woodcut). 


KNIVES  WITH  LANCEOLATE  BLADES. 


213 


A  mould  for  blades  of  this  character  will  subsequently  be  mentioned. 

Another  form  of  knife,  unless  possibly  it  was  intended  for  a  lance- 
head,  is  shown  in  Fig.  256.  This  specimen  is  also  from  the  Eeach  Fen 
hoard,  but  is  of  yellower  metal  and  differently  patinated  from  the  objects 
found  with  it.  Canon  Greenwell  has  a  knife  of  the  same  form  (4£  inches), 
found  at  Seamer  Carr,  Yorkshire.  Another,  smaller  (3$-  inches),  is  in 
the  British  Museum,  but  its  place  of  finding  is  not  known.  A  nearly 
similar  blade,  found  near  Ballycastle,  Co.  Antrim,  is  shown  in  Fig.  257. 

Another  example  of  this  form  (5-f  inches)  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

Sir  W.  "Wilde  *  has  figured  some  other  examples  of  the  same  kind,  from 
3  to  4  inches  long,  which  he  regarded  as  arrow-heads.  They  appear  to 
me,  however,  too  large  for  such  a  purpose. 

In  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  is  yet  another  variety,  with 
the  blade  pierced  in  the  centre  (Fig.  258). 


Fig.  255.-Ballyclare.  *    Fig.  256.-Eeach  Fen.  J     Fig.  257.-BaUycastle.  J     Fig.  258.-Ireland. 

Before  proceeding  to  describe  some  other  symmetrical  double- 
edged  blades,  it  will  be  well  to  notice  such  few  examples  as  have 
been  found  of  single-edged  blades,  like  the  ordinary  knives  of  the 
present  day.  Abundant  as  these  are,  not  only  in  the  Lake- dwell- 
ings of  Switzerland,  but  in  France  and  other  continental  countries, 
they  are  of  extremely  rare  occurrence  in  the  British  Isles. 

In  Fig.  259  I  have  engraved  a  small  instrument  of  this  kind,  found  at 
Wigginton,  near  Tring,  Herts,  the  handle  of  which  terminates  in  the 
head  of  an  animal.  It  was  therefore  not  intended  for  insertion  into  a 
haft  of  some  other  material. 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  503,  figs.  387,  388,  389. 


214  KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  IX. 

I  have  another  bronze  knife,  rather  longer  and  narrower,  and  with  a 
pointed  tang,  which  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  London ;  but  of  this  I 
am  by  no  means  certain. 

The  rude  knife  found  with  the  Isle  of  Harty  hoard,  and  shown  full  size 


Fig.  259.— Wigginton. 


as  Fig.  260,  is  the  only  other  English  specimen  with  which  I  am  ac- 
quainted, but  no  doubt  more  exist. 

The  only  specimen  mentioned  in  the  Catalogue  of  the  Museum  of  the 
Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland  is  in  all  14  inches  long,  with  a  thick 
back  and  notched  tang,  and  of  this  the  place  of  finding  is  unknown. 


Fig.  260.— Isle  of  Harty. 

Professor  Daniel  Wilson  *  speaks  of  it  as  having  been  found  in  Ayrshire, 
and  regards  it  as  a  reaping  instrument.  He  also  figures  a  socketed  knife 
of  much  the  same  size  from  the  collection  of  Sir  John  Clerk  at  Peni- 
cuick  House,  in  which  are  also  some  tanged  specimens.  I  cannot  help 
suspecting  that  these  are  of  foreign  origin. 

In  Ireland  the  form  appears  to  be  at  present  unknown. 

In  Fig.  261   is  shown  a  knife  of  a  form  which  is  of  extremely 

rare  occurrence  in  this  country  ; 
though,  as  will  be  seen,  it  has 
frequently  been  found  in  France. 


The   specimen   here    figured    has 
been  kindly  lent  me  by  Mr.   Hum- 

__^_>___^__  phrey  Wickham,  of  Strood,  and  was 

Fig  26i  -Aiihaiiows  Hoo        t  found  with  a  hoard  of  bronze  objects 

at  Allhallows,  Hoo,f  Kent.  The 
hoard  contained  socketed  celts,  gouges,  a  spear-head,  fragments  of 
swords,  and  the  object  engraved  as  Fig.  286.  One  more  crescent-like  in 
form  was  found  with  a  hoard  of  bronze  objects  near  Meldreth,  Cam- 
bridgeshire, and  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

Knives  of  this  kind  were  associated  with  celts,  gouges,  &c.,  in  the  hoard 

*  "  Preh.  Ann.  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  402.  t  Arch.  Cant.,  vol.  xi.  p.  125,  pi.  c.  14. 


KNIVES  OF  PECULIAR  TYPES.  215 

of  Notre-Dame  d'Or,  now  in  the  museum  at  Poitiers.     Two  also  were 
present  in  the  Alderney  hoard  found  near  the  Pierre  du  Villain.* 

Some  knives  of  this  character  were  found  with  a  hoard  of  bronze  tools 
and  weapons  at  Questembert,  Brittany,  and  are  now  in  the  museum  at 
Vannes.  A  broken  one  was  in  the  hoard  of  the  Jardin  des  Plantes, 
Nantes.f  One  from  La  Manche  is  engraved  in  the  Memoirs  of  the  Society 
of  Antiquaries  of  Normandy,  1827 — 8,  pi.  xvi.  20.  A  knife  of  this 
character  of  rectangular  form,  each  side  being  brought  to  an  edge, 
was  found  with  other  bronze  relics  at  Ploneour,  Brittany,  and  is  en- 
graved in  the  Archceologia  Camlrensis.^  In  character  this  knife  closely 
resembles  some  of  those  in  flint.  §  A  kind  of  triangular  knife  of  the 
same  character  was  found  at  Briatexte||  (Tarn).  One  from  the  station 
of  Eaux  Vives,  in  the  Lake  of  Geneva,  has  the  face  ornamented  at  the 
blunt  margin  with  a  vandyke  of  hatched  triangles.  In  some  French 
varieties  there  are  rings  at  the  top  of  the  blade  instead  of  holes  through 
it.  In  a  curious  specimen  from  St.  Julien,  Chateuil,  in  the  collection  of 
M.  Aymard,  at  Le  Puy,  the  edge  is  nearly  semicircular,  and  there  are 
eight  round  holes  through  the  blade  as  well  as  two  rings  at  the  back. 
Some  of  the  razors  from  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Savoy  and  Switzerland 
are  of  much  the  same  character  as  these  knives.  I  have  a  knife  of  this 
class  with  a  rather  large  triangular  opening  in  it  and  two  circular  loops, 
found  at  Bernissart,  Hainault.  ^f  Another  somewhat  different  was  found  at 
Lavene**  (Tarn). 


Fig.  262.-Cottle. 

A  Danish  ff  knife  of  this  character  has  five  circular  loops  along  the 
hollowed  back.  A  Mecklenburg  |J  knife  has  three  such  loops  and  corded 
festoons  of  bronze  between. 

The  bronze  knife  or  razor,  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  262,  was  found  at 
Cottle,§§  near  Abingdon,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  of  a 
peculiar  and  distinct  type,  but  somewhat  resembles  in  character  the 
oblong  bronze  cutting  instrument  found  at  Ploneour,  Brittany,  already 
mentioned.  It  is  thinner  and  flatter  than  would  appear  from  the  figure. 
A  Mecklenburg  ||  ||  knife  or  razor  figured  by  Lisch  is  analogous  in  form. 

I  have  a  rough  and  imperfect  blade  of  somewhat  the  same  character  as 
that  from  Cottle,  but  thinner  and  more  curved.  It  has  no  hole  through 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  9.     t  Parenteau,  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  viii.  16. 
J  3rd  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  138.  §  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  304,  fig.  255. 

||  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiv.  pi.  ix.  4. 
H  "  Ann.  du  cercle  Arch,  de  Mons,"  1857,  pi.  i-  6. 

**  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiv.  p.  489.  ft  Worsaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  160. 

U  Lisch,  "Freder.  Francisc.,"  tab.  xvii.  10. 

§§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  301.  For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to 
the  Council  of  the  Society. 

||||  "Freder.  Francisc.,"  tab.  xviii.  14. 


216 


KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


it,  but  thickens  out  at  one  end  into  a  short  boat-shaped  projection  about 
i  inch  long.  It  was  found  near  Londonderry. 

A  diminutive  pointed  blade  which  appears  to  be  too  small  to  have  been 
in  use  as  a  dagger,  and  which  from  the  rivet-hole  through  the  tang  can 
hardly  have  served  as  an  arrow  or  lance  head,  is  shown  in  Fig.  263.  This 
specimen  formed  part  of  the  Eeach  Fen  hoard.  A  very  small  example  of 
this  kind  of  blade,  from  a  barrow  near  Robin  Hood's  Ball,  Wilts,  has 
been  figured  by  the  late  Dr.  Thurnam,  F.S.A.,  in  his  second  exhaustive 
paper  on  "Ancient  British  Barrows,"  published  in  the  Archaologia,* 
from  which  I  have  derived  much  useful  information. 

A  small  blade  with  the  sides  more  curved  is  shown  in  Fig.  264,  which  I 
have  copied  from  Dr.  Thurnam's  engraving.f  The  original  was  found  in 
Lady  Low,  Staffordshire. 

A  smaller  example,  with  a  longer  and  iniperforated  tang,  found  in  an 
urn  at  Broughton,^:  Lincolnshire,  and  now  in  the  British  Museum,  has 
been  thought  to  be  an  arrow-head ;  but  I  agree  with  Dr.  Thurnam  in 
regarding  both  it  and  the  small  blades  described  by  Hoare  §  as  arrow- 
heads, as  being  more  probably  small  double-edged  knives. 


Fig.  263. 
Reach  Fen. 


Some  remarks  as  to  the  almost  if  not  absolutely  entire  absence 
of  bronze  arrow-heads  in  this  country  will  be  found  in  a  subsequent 
page. 

The  larger  specimens  of  these  tanged  blades  of  somewhat  tri- 
angular outline  I  have  described  as  daggers,  but  I  must  confess 
that  the  distinction  between  knives  and  daggers  is  in  such  cases 
purely  arbitrary.  The  more  rounded  forms  which  now  follow  seem 
rather  of  the  nature  of  tools  or  toilet  instruments  than  weapons. 

Fig.  265,  copied  from  Dr.  Thurnam's  plate,  ||  represents  what  has  been 
regarded  as  a  razor  blade.  It  was  found  in  a  barrow  at  "Winterslow, 

*  Vol.  xliii.  p.  450,  pi.  xxxii.  5.      f  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxii.  fig.  4. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  p.  346.     §  "  Anc.  Wilts,"vol.  i.  pp.  67,  176,  238,  pi.  xxxii.  1. 

||  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxii.  fig.  8. 


DOUBLE-EDGED   KAZORS. 


217 


Wilts,  and  is  now  in  the  Ashmolean  Museum  at  Oxford.  Its  resemblance 
to  the  leaf  of  rib-wort  (Plantago  media]  has  been  pointed  out  by  Dr.  Thur- 
nam,  who  records  that  it  was  found  in  an  urn  with  burnt  bones  and  a  set 
of  beautiful  amber  buttons  or  studs.  He  has  also  figured  one  of  nearly 
the  same  size,  but  with  fewer  ribs,  from  a  barrow  at  Priddy,  Somerset. 
This  also  has  been  regarded  as  an  arrow-head,  though  it  is  3  inches  long 
and  1£  inches  broad.  It  has  a  small  rivet-hole  through  the  tang.  The 
original  is  now  in  the  Bristol  Museum,  and  its  edge  is  described  as  sharp 
enough  to  mend  a  pen.*  I  have  reproduced  it  in  Fig.  266.  A  blade  of 
much  the  same  kind  was  found  in  an  urn,  with  an  axe-hammer  of  stone 
and  a  whetstone,  at  Broughton-in-Craven,f  in  1675. 


Fig.  267.— Balblair. 


Fig.  268.-Rogart. 


Canon  Greenwell  records  the  finding  of  an  oval  knife  (2|  inches)  with 
burnt  bones  in  an  urn  at  Nether  Swell,^  Gloucestershire. 

A  flat  blade,  almost  circular,  with  a  somewhat  longer  tang  than  any 
here  figured,  formed  part  of  the  great  Bologna  hoard. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  152. 

t  Thoresby's  "Catal.,"  in  Whitaker's  ed.  of  "Ducat.  Leod.,"  p.  114. 

J  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  446. 


218 


KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


These  instruments  are  occasionally  found  in  Scotland.  Some 
of  them  are  of  rather  larger  size,  and  ornamented  in  a  different 
manner  upon  the  face. 

A  small  plain  oval  blade,  which  has  possibly  lost  its  tang,  was  found 
in  a  tumulus  at  Lieraboll,*  Kildonan,  Sutherland,  and  has  been  figured. 
Two  oval  blades  were  found  with  burnt  bones  in  urns  near  St.  Andrews.f 

Another,  found  in  a  large  cinerary  urn  at  Balblair,^  Sutherlandshire, 
is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  267.  The  edges  are  very  thin  and  sharp,  and 
the  central  rib  shown  in  the  section  is  ornamented  with  incised  lines. 

Another  blade  of  the  same  character,  but  ornamented  with  a  lozenge 
pattern,  and  with  the  midrib  less  pronounced,  is  shown  in  Fig.  268,  also 
of  the  actual  size.  It  was  found  in  a  tumulus  at  Kogart,§  Sutherland. 


Fig.  269.— Wallingford.       * 


Fig.  270.— Heathery  Burn  Cave. 


Another,  apparently  more  perfect,  and  with  many  more  lozenges  in  the 
pattern,  is  engraved  in  Gordon's  "Itinerarium  Septentrionale."  ||  He 
describes  it  as  "the  end  of  a  spear  or  Hasta  Pura  of  old  mixt  brass, 
finely  chequered."  It  was  in  Baron  Clerk's  collection. 

The  only  English  example  which  I  can  adduce  was  found  with  some 
sickles,  a  torque,  and  numerous  other  objects  at  Taunton.  It  is  of  nearly 
the  same  size  and  shape  as  Fig.  267,  but  the  centre  plate  is  fluted  with  a 
slight  ridge  along  the  middle  and  one  on  either  side,  and  is  not  orna- 
mented. It  is  described  as  a  lance-head  in  the  Archaeological  Journal.9^ 

I  am  not  aware  of  any  such  blades  having  ever  been  found  in  Ireland, 
in  which  country  the  plainer  forms  of  oval  razors  also  seem  to  be  ex- 
tremely rare. 

In  Canon  Greenwell's  Collection  is  an  oval  blade  (4  inches)  with  a  flat 
central  rib,  tapering  to  a  point,  running  along  it.  It  has  no  tang,  but 

t  Greenwell, 


Brit.  Barrows,"  p.  446. 
For  the  use  of  this  cut,  as  well  as  figs.  268, 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  p.  434. 
%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vii.  p.  476. 
271,  272,  and  273,  I  am  indebted  to  the  Society. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  p.  431.  ||  P.  116,  pi.  1.  8  (1726). 

H  Vol.  xxxvii.  p.  95.     See  also  Pring,  "  Brit,  and  Rom.  Taunton,"  pi.  i.  4. 


SCOTCH    AND   IRISH    RAZORS. 


219 


there  is  a  rivet-hole  through  the  broad  end  of  the  rib.     It  was  found  in 
an  urn  with  burnt  bones  at  Killyless,  Co.  Antrim. 

The  form  most  commonly  known  under  the  name  of  razor  is  that 
shown  in  Fig.  269,  from  a  specimen  in  my  own  collection,  found 
in  the  Thames,  with  a  socketed  knife  and  other  objects,  near 
Wallingford.  One  of  almost  identical  character  was  found  at 
Llangwyllog,*  Anglesea. 


Fig.  273.—  Dunbar.        J 


Fig.  274.—  Ireland. 


Another,  without  midrib,  from  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  is,  by  the 
permission  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.,  shown  as  Fig.  270. 

An  example  from  Wiltshire  f  in  the  Stourhead  Museum  (now  at 
Devizes)  is  more  barbed  at  the  base  and  rounded  at  the  top,  in  which 
there  is  neither  notch  nor  perforation. 

It  is  difficult  to  assign  a  use  for  the  small  hole  usually  to  be  seen  in 

*  Arch.  t/bwrw.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74;  Arch.  Cfcwwi.,  3rd  S.,vol.  xii.  p.  97;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii. 
pi.  xxxii.  7. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxii.  6. 


220 


KNIVES,    RAZORS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  ix. 


these  blades.  It  may  possibly  be  by  way  of  precaution  against  the 
fissure  in  the  blade  extending  too  far,  though  in  most  cases  the  notch  in 
the  end  of  the  blade  does  not  extend  to  the  hole. 

Eazors  of  this  character  have  been  discovered  in  Scotland.  Three 
which  are  believed  to  have  been  found  together  in  a  tumulus  at  Bower- 
houses,  near  Jhmbar,*  Haddingtonshire,  about  1825,  are  shown  in  Figs. 
271,  272,  and  273.  They  are  all  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum,  at 
Edinburgh,  together  with  a  socketed  celt  found  with  them. 

Eazors  of  the  class  last  described  have  been  found  in  Ireland,  and 
three  are  mentioned  in  Wilde's  Catalogue  f  of  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal 


Fig.  275,-Kinleith. 


Irish  Academy,  to  the  Council  of  which  body  I  am  indebted  for  the  use  of 
Fig.  274.  The  midrib  of  the  specimen  here  shown  is  decorated  with  ring 
ornaments  formed  of  incised  concentric  circles,  an  ornament  of  frequent 
use  in  early  times,  though  but  rarely  occurring  on  objects  of  bronze  in 
Britain.  There  is  a  large  razor  of  this  kind  in  the  Museum  of  Trinity 
College,  Dublin.  Several  unornamented  blades  of  this  character  were 
present  in  the  Dowris  hoard.  Two  which  were  found  in  a  crannogej  in 
the  county  of  Monaghan  were  regarded  as  bifid  arrow-heads.  One  of 
these  (2f  inches)  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

*  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  p.  440 ;  "  Catal.,"  p.  83,  No.  182. 

t  P.  649,  fig.  433.  %  Arch-  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  47. 


CONTINENTAL    FORMS. 


221 


A  blade  of  this  kind,  but  with  a  loop  instead  of  a  tang,  and  a  hole  at 
the  base  of  the  blade  as  well  as  one  near  the  bottom  at  the  notch,  was 
found  at  Deurne,*  Guelderland,  and  is  in  the  Leyden  Museum. 

The  only  remaining  form  of  razor  which  has  to  be  noticed  is  that  of 
which  a  representation  is  given  of  the  actual  size  in  Fig.  275. 

This  instrument  was  found  at  Kinleith,  f  near  Currie,  Edinburgh,  and 
has  been  described  and  commented  on  by  Dr.  John  Alexander  Smith. 
The  blade,  besides  being  perforated  in  an  artistic  manner  and  having  a 
ring  at  the  end  of  the  handle,  is  of  larger  dimensions  than  usual  with 
instruments  of  this  kind.  The  metal  of  which  it  is  composed  consists  of 
copper  92-97  per  cent.,  tin  7-03  (with  a  trace 
of  lead). 

It  aifords  the  only  instance  of  a  razor  of 
this  shape  having  been  found  in  the  British 
Isles.  The  form  much  more  nearly  ap- 
proaches one  of  not  uncommon  occurrence  on 
the  Continent  than  any  other  British  ex- 
ample, and  Dr.  Smith  has  illustrated  this  by 
the  accompanying  figure  of  a  razor  from  the 
Steinberg,  near  Nidau,];  on  the  Lake  of 
Bienne  (Fig.  276).  I  have  a  razor  of  nearly 
the  same  form  from  the  Seine  at  Paris,  and 
others  have  been  found  in  various  parts  of 
France.  § 

The  nearest  in  character  to  Fig.  275  is  per- 
haps one  found  in  the  hoard  of  Notre-Dame 
d'0r,|[  and  preserved  in  the  museum  at  Poi- 
tiers. Instead  of  the  blade  being  a  single 
crescent,  it  consists  of  two  penannular  con- 
centric blades  with  a  plain  midrib  connecting 
them,  which  has  a  ring  at  the  external  end. 

An  instrument  with  the  blade  formed  of  a  single  crescent  was  found  at 
the  same  time. 

A  German  example  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Deutsche  Gesellschaft,  at 
Leipzig. 

In  the  next  chapter  I  shall  treat  of  those  blades  which  appear  to 
be  weapons  rather  than  tools. 

*  Jannsen's  "  Catal.,"  No.  209. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  84  ;  vol.  x.  p.  441.     I  am  indebted  to  the  Society 
for  the  use  of  this  and  the  following  cut. 
J  See  Keller,  5ter  Bericht,  Taf .  xvi. 
$  See  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  lere  partie,  p.  76. 
||  Mem.  de  la  Soc.  des  Ant.  de  V  Quest,  1844,  pi.  ix.  10. 


Fig.  276.— Kidau. 


CHAPTER  X. 

DAGGERS    AND    THEIR    HILTS. RAPIER-SHAPED    BLADES. 

AMONG  all  uncivilised,  if  not  indeed  among  all  civilised  nations, 
arms  of  offence  take  a  far  higher  rank  than  mere  tools  and 
implements  ;  and  on  the  first  introduction  of  the  use  of  metal 
into  any  country,  there  is  great  antecedent  probability  that  the 
primary  service  to  which  it  was  applied  was  for  the  manufac- 
ture of  weapons.  So  far  as  there  are  means  of  judging,  a 
small  knife  or  knife-dagger  appears  to  have  been  among  the 
earliest  objects  to  which  bronze  was  applied  in  Britain.  Possibly, 
like  the  Highland  dirk,  the  early  form  may  have  served  for  both 
peaceful  and  warlike  purposes  ;  but  there  are  other  and  appa- 
rently later  forms  made  for  piercing  rather  than  for  cutting,  and 
which  are  unmistakably  weapons.  The  distinction  which  can  be 
drawn  between  knives,  such  as  some  of  those  described  in  the 
last  chapter,  and  the  daggers  to  be  described  in  this,  is  no  doubt 
to  a  great  extent  arbitrary,  and  mainly  dependent  upon  size.  In 
the  same  way  the  distinction  between  a  large  dagger  and  a  small 
sword,  such  as  some  of  those  to  be  described  in  the  next  chapter, 
is  one  for  which  no  hard  and  fast  rule  can  be  laid  down. 

Nor  in  treating  of  daggers  can  any  trustworthy  chronological 
arrangement  be  adopted,  though  it  is  probable,  as  already  observed, 
that  the  thin  flat  blades  are  earliest  in  date.  The  late  Dr.  Thurnam, 
in  the  paper  already  frequently  cited,  has  pointed  out  that  of 
bronze  blades  without  sockets  there  are  two  distinct  types.  These 
are  the  tanged,  which  he  regards  as  perhaps  the  more  modern,  and 
those  provided  with  rivet-holes  in  the  base  of  the  blade,  which 
seem  to  be  the  most  ancient.  I  purpose  mainly  to  follow  this 
classification  ;  and,  inasmuch  as  the  tanged  blades  are  most  closely 
connected  with  the  smaller  examples  of  the  same  character, 
described  in  the  last  chapter,  I  take  them  first  in  order,  though 
possibly  they  are  not  the  earliest  in  date. 


TANGED  KNIVES  OR  DAGGERS. 


223 


But  for  its  size,  the  blade  shown  in  Fig.  277  might  have  been  regarded 
as  a  knife  for  ordinary  use.     The  original  was  found  in  a  barrow  at 
Roundway,*  Wilts,  covered  with  a  layer  of  black  powder,  probably  the 
remains  of  a  wooden  sheath  and  handle,  the  upper 
outline  of  which  latter  is  marked  upon  the  blade. 
It  lay  near  the  left  hand  of  a  contracted  skeleton, 
with  its  point  towards  the  feet.      Between  the 
bones  of  the  left  fore-arm  was  a  bracer,  f  or  arm- 
guard,  of  chlorite  slate,  and  part  of  the  blade  and 
the  tang  of  some   small  instrument,   perhaps   a 
knife.     Near  the  head  was  a  barbed  flint  arrow- 
head. 

A  smaller  blade  J  (5£  inches),  of  nearly  the 
same  shape  and  character,  was  found  in  one  of 
the  barrows  near  "Winterslow,  Wilts,  as  well  as 
one  more  tapering  in  form. 

Another,  from  Button  Courtney,  Berks  (6J 
inches  by  If  inches),  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

Another  (5^  inches)  was  found  by  Mr.  Fenton 
in  a  barrow  at  Mere  Down,§  Wilts.  In  this  case 
also  there  was  a  stone  bracer  near  the  left  side 
of  the  contracted  skeleton.  Another,  imperfect, 
and  narrower  in  the  tang,  was  found  at  Bryn 
Crug,||  Carnarvon,  with  interments.  The  double- 
looped  celt  (Fig.  88)  was  found  at  the  same 
place. 

Canon  Green-well,  F.E.S.,  has  what  appears  to 
be  a  tanged  dagger  (6  inches)  from  Sherburn 
Wold,  Yorkshire. 

A  blade  of  this  character  (10  inches)  was  found 
by  M.  Cazalis  de  Fondouce  in  the  cave  of 
Bounias,^|  near  Fonvielle  (Bouches  du  Rhone), 
associated  with  instruments  of  flint. 

Smaller  tanged  blades,  of  which  it  is  hard  to 
say  whether  they  are  knives  or  daggers,  are  not 
uncommon  in  France.  Two  are  engraved  in  the 
"  Materiaux."  **  I  have  specimens  from  Lyons, 
and  also  from  Brittany. 

Another  form,  which  appears  to  be  a  dagger 
rather  than  a  knife,  has  the  tang  nearly  as  wide 
as  the  blade,  and  towards  its  base  there  is  a 
single  rivet-hole.  A  dagger  of  this  kind  was 
found  with  a  contracted  interment  in  a  barrow 
near  Drifneld,  Yorkshire,  and  an  engraving  of  it 


Fig.  277.— Roundway.    J 


*  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  450,  fig.  l./>4,  from  which  this  cut  is  copied;  "Wilts.  Arch. 
Mag.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  186;  "Cran.  Brit.,"  pi.  42,  xxxii.  p.  3. 

t  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  381,  fig.  355. 

I  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxii.  2,  3,  p.  449. 

§  Hoare's  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  44,  pi.  ii. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  246. 

IF  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Br.,"  Ire  partie,  p.  91  ;  Cazalis  de  Fondoiice,  "  Alices  couv.  de  la 
Provence,"  pi.  iv.  1. 

**  Vol.  xiv.  p.  491. 


224    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X, 

is  given  in  the  Archceologia*  from  which  Fig.  278  is  reproduced.  It  had 
a  wooden  sheath  as  well  as  the  wooden  handle,  of  which  a  part  is  shown. 
On  the  arm  of  the  skeleton  was  a  stone  bracer. 

Another,  rather  narrower  in  the  tang  and  about  4J  inches  long,  was 
found,  with  a  stone  axe-hammer,  and  bones,  in  an  urn  within  a  barrow  at 
Win  wick,  f  near  Warrington,  Lancashire.  One  (2£  inches)  with  a  rivet- 
hole  in  its  broad  tang  was  found  in  an  urn  on  Lancaster  Moor.| 

A  dagger  of  nearly  the  same  form  but  having  two  rivet-holes  was 
found  by  the  late  Eev.  E.  Kirwan  in  a  barrow  at  Upton  Pyne,§  Devon. 

One,  only  3£  inches  long,  and  much  like  Fig.  278  in  form,  was  found  in 
an  urn  with  burnt  bones  in  Moot  Low,  ||  near  Middleton,  Derbyshire. 

Another  was  found  with  burnt  bones  in  a  barrow  at 
Lady  Low,^[  near  Blore,  Staffordshire.  The  end  of 
the  handle  in  this  instance  was  straight,  and  not  hol- 
lowed. One  (5f  inches)  with  a  broad  tang,  through 
which  passes  a  single  rivet,  was  found  in  the  Thames.** 
It  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

What  Sir  E.  C.  Hoare  terms  a  lance-head  (3  inches), 
found  with  amber  beads  in  the  Golden  Barrow,  ff 
Upton  Lovel,  appears  to  have  been  a  knife-dagger  of 
this  character. 

A  knife,  1  inch  wide,  which  had  been  fastened  to  its 
haft  of  ox-horn  by  a  single  rivet,  was  found  by  Canon 
Greenwell  in  a  barrow  at  Eudstone,  Yorkshire. Jt 
With  the  same  interment  was  an  axe-hammer  of  stone 
and  a  flint  tool.  A  blade  like  Fig.  278  (3  inches), 
Fig.  278.— Driffieid.  |  from  the  sand-hills  near  Glenluce,§§  Wigtonshire, 

has  been  figured. 

Daggers,  or  possibly  spear-heads,  with  a  broad  tang,  as  well  as  the 
moulds  in  which  they  were  cast,  were  discovered  by  Dr.  Schliemann  on 
the  presumed  site  of  Troy.|||| 

The  more  ordinary  form  of  instrument  is  that  of  which  the  blade 
was  secured  to  the  handle  by  two  or  more  rivets  at  its  broad  base. 
These  may  be  subdivided  into  knife-daggers  with  thin  flat  blades, 
and  daggers  which  as  a  rule  have  a  thick  midrib  and  more  or  less 
ornamentation  on  the  surface  of  the  blade.  The  former  variety 
is  now  generally  accepted  as  being  the  more  ancient  of  the  two, 
and  may  probably  have  served  as  a  cutting  instrument  for  all 
purposes,  and  not  have  been  intended  for  a  weapon. 

Fig.  279,  representing  a  knife-dagger  from  a  barrow  at  Butterwick,^[5f 
Yorkshire,  E.E.,  explored  by  Canon  Greenwell,  will  give  a  good  idea  of 

*  Vol.  xxxiv.  pi.  xx.  8,  p.  255. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  295,  pi.  xxv.  9. 

|  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  160.         §  Trans.  Devon.  Assoc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  643. 

||   "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  51;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  247;  Bateman's  "  Catal.,"  p.  4. 

IT  "Ten  Years'  Digg.,"  p.  163;  "  Catal.,"  p.  19. 

**  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  45.      ft  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  99,  pi.  xi. 

t+  "British  Barrows,"  p.  265.  §§  "Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,"  vol.  ii.  p.  12. 

IHI  "  Troy  and  its  Remains,"  p.  330.  Ht  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  186. 


KNIFE-DAGGERS    WITH    THREE    RIVETS. 


225 


the  usual  form,  though  these  instruments  are  not  unfrequently  more 
acutely  pointed.  This  specimen  was  found  with  the  body  of  a  young 
man,  and  had  been  encased  in  a  wooden  sheath.  The  haft  had  been  of 
ox-horn,  which  has  perished,  though  leaving  marks  of  its  texture  on  the 
oxidized  blade.  In  the  same  grave  were  a  flat  bronze  celt  (Fig.  2),  a  bronze 
pricker  or  awl  (Fig.  225),  a  flint  knife,  and  some  jet  buttons.  Another 
blade  of  the  same  character,  but  rather  narrower  in  its  proportions,  was 
found  in  a  barrow  at  Eudstone,*  Yorkshire.  The  handle  had  in  this 
instance  also  been  of  ox-horn.  In  the  same  grave  were  a  whetstone,  a 
ring  and  an  ornamental  button  of  jet,  and  a  half  -nodule  of  pyrites  and 
a  flint  for  striking  a  light.  Of  the  shape  of  the  handles  I  shall  subse- 
quently speak  ;  I  will  only  here  remark  that  at  their  upper  part,  where 
they  clasped  the  blade,  there  was  usually 
a  semi-circular  or  horseshoe-shaped  notch, 
in  some  instances  very  wide  and  in  others 
but  narrow.  This  notch  is  more  rarely 
somewhat  V-shaped  in  form. 

A  blade  of  nearly  the  same  form  as  Fig. 
279,  but  with  only  two  rivet  holes,  found 
in  a  barrow  at  Blewbury,f  Berks,  is  pre- 
served in  the  Ashmolean  Museum  at  Oxford. 
Another,  also  with  two  rivets,  was  found 
by  the  late  Mr.  Bateman  in  a  barrow  near 
Minning  Low,J  Derbyshire.  Its  handle  ap- 
pears to  have  been  of  horn.  Its  owner, 
wrapped  in  a  skin,  had  been  buried  enve- 
loped in  fern-leaves,  and  with  him  was  also 
a  flat  bronze  celt,  a  flat  bead  of  jet,  and 
a  flint  scraper.  Dr.  Thurnam  mentions 
eighteen  §  other  blades,  varying  from  2£ 
inches  to  6f  inches  in  length,  as  having  been 
found  during  the  Bateman  excavations,  as 
well  as  one  7f  inches  long  and  sharply  pointed,  found  at  Lett  Low,  ||  near 
Warslow,  Staffordshire.  Of  these  twenty,  sixteen  were  found  with 
unburnt  bodies  and  four  with  burnt.  Some  of  these  were,  however, 
of  the  tanged  variety,  and  some  fluted  or  ribbed.  At  Carder  Low  a 
small  axe-hammer  of  basalt,  as  well  as  a  knife-dagger  of  this  kind, 
with  the  edges  worn  hollow  by  use,  had  been  placed  with  the  body. 
The  same  was  the  case  in  a  barrow  at  Parcelly  Hay,  near  Hartington, 
Derbyshire. 

At  End  Low,  near  Hartington,  there  was  a  rudely  formed  "spear- 
head" of  flint  beside  the  knife-dagger,  and  at  Thorncliff,^}  on  Calton 
Moor,  Staffordshire,  "a  neat  instrument  of  flint." 

In  some  cases,  though  there  were  holes  in  the  blade,  there  were  no 
rivets  **  in  them,  which  led  Mr.  Bateman  to  think  that  they  were  attached 


<M 


Fig.  279.— Butterwick. 


Ten  Years' 


*  "British  Barrows,"  p.  264,  fig.  125  ;  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  284. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  282;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  249. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.   217;  Bateman's  "  Catal.,"  p.   15 
Dig.,"  p.  34. 

§  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  pp.  61,  63,  66,  68,  90,  96;  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  pp.  21,  24,  34 
39,  57,  91,  113,  115,  119,  148,  160,  163;  "Cran.  Brit.,"  pi.  13,  xxii.  2. 

||  "  Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  245  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  42. 

IT  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  119.  •  **  Op.  cit.,  pp.  57,  113. 


226     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR   HILTS. RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.   X. 

to  their  handles  by  ligatures.  In  a  barrow  in  Yorkshire/'-1  Mr.  Har- 
land  found,  with  remains  of  a  burnt  body,  a  small  bronze  knife  which 
still  had  adhering  to  it  some  portions  of  cord  partly  charred,  apparently 
the  remains  of  what  had  formed  the  attachment  to  the  handle.  Pins  of 
wood,  bone,  or  horn  were  no  doubt  frequently  used  instead  of  metal  rivets. 
Such  pins  seem  to  have  been  commonly  employed  for  securing  spear- 
heads to  their  shafts.  "  An  instrument  of  brass, f  formed  like  a  spear- 
head, but  flat  and  thin,"  was  found  in  a  barrow  on  Bincombe  Down, 
Dorsetshire.  "It  had  been  fixed  to  a  shaft  by  means  of  three  wooden 

gs,  one  of  which  remained  in  the  perforation  when  found,  but  on 

ing  exposed  to  the  air  fell  immediately  into  dust."  In  certain  dagger 
blades  with  four  or  more  rivet-holes  some  are  devoid  of  rivets,  while 
there  are  metal  rivets  in  the  others. 

A  remarkably  small  blade,  only  1|-  inches  long,  with  two  rivet-holes, 
was  found  in  a  tumulus  in  Dorsetshire. J  Another  (4£  inches)  lay  with 
burnt  bones,  in  what  was  regarded  as  a  cleft  and  hollowed  trunk  of  a  tree, 
in  a  barrow  near  Yatesbury,§  "Wilts.  Another,  more  triangular  in  shape, 
and  also  with  two  rivet-holes,  was  found  in  a  barrow  near  Stonehenge.|| 

Another  (2£  inches)  of  the  same  character  was  found  with  burnt  bones, 
a  needle  of  wood,  and  a  broken  flint  pebble,  in  an  urn  at  Tomen-y-Mur,^| 
near  Festiniog,  Merionethshire. 

Of  knife-daggers  with  three  rivet-holes  found  in  our  southern  counties, 
may  be  mentioned  one  (5£  inches)  found  with  a  drinking  cup  and  a 
perforated  stone  axe,  accompanying  an  unburnt  interment,  in  a  barrow  at 
East  Kennett,**  Wilts.  Another  (4£  inches),  also  accompanied  by  a  stone 
axe-hammer,  was  found  in  a  barrow  called  Jack's  Castle, ff  near  Stourton. 
The  body  had  in  this  instance  been  burnt.  Another  knife-dagger,  also 
with  burnt  bones,  in  a  barrow  at  Wilsford,||  was  accompanied  by  two  flint 
arrow-heads,  some  whetstones,  and  some  instruments  of  stag's-horn. 
Another,  protected  by  a  wooden  scabbard,  was  found  in  a  barrow  at 
Brigmilston.§§ 

What  appear  to  have  been  blades  of  the  same  kind  were  found  with 
burnt  bones  in  the  barrows  near  Priddy,  ||  ||  Somerset,  and  Ashey  Down,^ 
Isle  of  Wight  (6  inches).  The  latter  is  tapering  in  form.  One  (7f  inches) 
which  shows  no  rivets  was  found  at  Goiter,***  Lanarkshire. 

An  unfinished  blade  without  rivet-holes  was  also  found,  with  castings 
of  palstaves  and  flanged  celts,  at  Ehosnesney,ftf  near  Wrexham. 

From  Derbyshire  may  be  cited  that  from  Carder  Low,JJ+  already  de- 
scribed, and  one  from  Brier  Low.§§§  Another  from  Lett  Low,  ||  |j  |[  Stafford- 
shire, has  already  been  mentioned,  as  have  been  others  described  by  Bate- 
man.  *[f^f^f  One  from  a  barrow  at  Middleton  ****  was  regarded  by  Pegge 
as  a  spear-head. 

*  Greenwell,  "  Brit.  Barrows,"  p.  360,  n. 

f  M.S.  Minutes  of  Soc.  Ants.,  1784,  p.  51,  cited  in  Warne's  "Celtic  Tumuli  of 
Dorset,"  pt.  iii.  p.  7.  i  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  323. 

$  Arch.  Inst.,  Salisb.  vol.  p.  97.  ||  Stukeley's"Stonehenge,"p.45,pl.xxxii. 

If  Areh.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  16;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  241. 

**  Arch.  Inst.,  Salisb.  vol.  p.  110 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  29. 

ft  Hoare's  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  39,  pi.  i.  ;  Archeeol.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  452. 

it  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  209.  §§  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  185. 

Illl  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  148,  151.  HIT  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  164. 

***  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  21.       tft  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  71. 

ttt  Archaol.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxiii.  fig.  4.      §§$  Ibid.,  fig.  3.  ||j|i|  Ibid.,  fig.  5. 

HH1T  "  Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  pp.  21,  115,  119.     **«*  Archatol.,  vol.  ix.  p.  94,  pi.  iii. 


METHOD    OF    HAFTING    DAGGERS. 


227 


From  Yorkshire  Mr.  Bateman  describes  one  (4£  inches)  with  a  crescent- 
shaped  mark  showing  the  form  of  the  handle,  found  with  an  extended 
skeleton  at  Cawthorn.*  Another  (6  or  7  inches),  from  a  barrow  near 
Pickering,!  nad.  a  V-shaped  notch  in  the  handle,  to  which  had  been 
attached  a  small  bone  pommel.  One  from  Bishop  Wilton,  J  belonging  to 
Mr.  Mortimer,  has  been  engraved  by  Dr.  Thurnam. 

The  mention  of  this  pommel  suggests  that  it  is  time  to  consider 
the  manner  in  which  these  blades  were  hafted,  as  to  which  the 
discoveries  of  Sir  Richard  Colt  Hoare  in  the 
Wiltshire  barrows,  and  of  Canon  Greenwell 
in  those  of  Yorkshire,  leave  no  doubt.  The 
hafts  appear  in  nearly  all  cases  to  have  con- 
sisted of  ox-horn,  bone,  or  wood,  sometimes 
in  a  single  piece  with  a  notch  for  receiving 
the  blade,  and  sometimes  formed  of  a  pair 
of  similar  pieces  riveted  together,  one  on 
each  side  of  the  blade.  The  lower  end  of 
the  haft  was  often  inserted  in  a  hollow 
pommel  usually  of  bone. 

The  nature  of  the  arrangement  of  the  haft 
when  formed  of  two  pieces  will  be  readily 
understood    on    reference    to    Fig.    280,    in 
which  the  presumed  outline  of  the  original 
ox-horn  haft  is  shown  by  dotted  lines,  and 
the  rivets  by  which  the  two  plates  of  horn 
were    bound    together    are   in   the   position 
they  originally  occupied  along  the  centre  of 
the  haft.     The  outline  of  the  upper  part  of 
this  handle,    where  it  was  secured  by  two 
rivets  to  the  blade,  is   still  visible,  and  is 
shown  by  darker  shading.     The  pommel  at 
the  lower  end  was  attached  by  pins  of  horn 
or  of  wood,    and  not    by  metal  rivets.       A   separate   view  and 
section  of   the  pommel   is  shown  in 
Fig.  281.      The  original  was  found  by 
Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  with  a  con- 
tracted   interment    in    a    barrow    at 
HelperthorpeJ  Yorkshire,  at  the  open- 
ing of  which  I  was  present.      As  will  be  seen,  the  blade  has  all 

*  "  Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  206.        t  Op.  oit.,  p.  226.       J  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxiii.  6. 
§  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  207.     This  specimen  has  since  been  presented,  with  the  rest 
of  the  Greenwell  Collection,  to  the  British  Museum. 

Q  2 


228    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. RAPIER- SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

the  appearance  of  having  been  much  worn  by  use  and  repeated 
whetting. 

Bone  pommels  of  the  same  kind  have  been  frequently  met  with  in 
barrows,  but  their  purpose  was  not  known  to  some  of  the  earlier  explorers. 
One  from  a  barrow  on  Brassington  Moor  *  is  described  by  Mr.  Bateman 
as  a  bone  stud  perforated  with  six  holes,  and  was  thought  to  have  been 
intended  for  being  sown  on  to  some  article  of  dress  or  ornament.  Another 
was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Narrow-dale  Hill,f  near  Alstonefield,  and  is  also 
described  as  a  bone  button.  In  both  these  instances  the  dagger  itself 
seems  to  have  entirely  perished. 

In  a  barrow  subsequently  opened  by  Mr.  Ruddock  near  Pickering,  j  the 
butt  end  of  a  dagger  handle  was  recognised  in  one  of  these  objects.  In 
this  instance  the  pommel  was  made  of  three  pieces  of  bone  fastened 
together  by  two  bronze  rivets,  and  having  two  holes  for  the  pegs  by 
which  it  was  secured  to  the  handle. 


Fig.  282.— Garton.  Fig.  2S3.-Wilmslow. 


Two  others  in  solid  bone  from  barrows  at  Garton  §  and  Bishop  Wilton, 
Yorkshire,  have  been  figured  by  Dr.  Thurnam.  The  former  is  here  by 
permission  reproduced.  That  from  the  well-known  Gristhorpe  tumulus,  || 
near  Scarborough,  in  which  the  body  lay  in  the  hollowed  trunk  of  an 
oak-tree,  is  more  neatly  made,  being  of  oval  outline  with  a  projecting 
bead  round  the  base.  It  has  holes  for  three  pins. 

Another  pommel  of  an  ornamental  character  was  found  with  burnt 
bones  in  an  urn  at  Wilmslow,  Cheshire,  and  is  engraved  in  the  Journal 
of  the  British  Archceological  Association,^  from  which  Fig.  283  is  here 
reproduced.  The  receptacle  is  so  small  that  the  haft  to  which  it  was 
attached  probably  consisted  of  but  a  single  piece  of  ox-horn  or  wood. 
It  appears  as  if  the  mortise  had  been  made  by  drilling  three  holes  side 
by  side. 

A  very  remarkable  and  beautiful  hilt  of  a  sword  or  dagger,  formed  of 
amber  of  a  rich  red  colour  and  inlaid  with  pins  of  gold,  was  found  in  a 
barrow  on  Hammeldon  Down,**  Devonshire.  By  the  kindness  of  the 
Committee  of  the  Plymouth  Athenaeum  I  am  enabled  to  give  two  views 

*  "  Catal.,"  p.  1 ;  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  39. 

t  "Catal.,"  p.  12;  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  98. 

t  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  226.  §  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  441. 

l|  "  Cran.  Brit.,"  52,4;  "Reliquary,"  vol.  vi.  p.  4. 

H  Vol.  xvi.  pi.  25,  fig.  5,  p.  288. 

**  Trans.  Devon,  jissoc.,  vol.  v.  p.  555,  pi.  ii. 


AMBER    HILT   INLAID    WITH   GOLD. 


229 


and  a  section  of  this  unique  object  in  Fig.  284.  Instead  of  a  socket  or 
mortise,  there  is  in  this  instance  a  tenon,  or  projection,  which  entered  into 
a  mortise  or  hole  in  the  handle.  On  each  side  of  this  tenon  is  a  small 
mortise  of  the  same  length,  and  through  the  tenon  have  been  drilled  two 
small  holes,  one  from  each  side,  for  pins  to  attach  the  pommel  to  the 
handle.  A  small  part  of  the  pommel  which  was  broken  off  in  old  times 
seems  to  have  been  united  to  the  main  body  by  a  series  of  minute  gold 
rivets  or  clips,  but  this  piece  has  again  been  severed,  though  the  pins 
round  the  margin  of  the  fracture  remain.  This  pommel  seems  dispropor- 
tionately large  for  the  slightly  fluted  blade,  of  which  a  fragment  was  found 
in  the  same  barrow. 


Tig.  284.— Hammeldon  Down. 


A  small  object  of  amber,  apparently  the  pommel  of  a  diminutive  dagger, 
was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Winterbourn  Stoke,*  Wilts.  A  small  knife  or 
scraper,  mounted  in  a  handle  formed  of  two  pieces  of  amber,  secured  by 
two  rivets  and  bound  with  four  strips  of  gold,  is  also  preserved  at  Stour- 
head.f  The  blade  is  at  the  side  like  that  of  a  hatchet. 

Amber  was  used  for  inlaying  some  of  the  ivory  hilts  of  iron  swords  at 
Hallstatt. 

The  bronze  object  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  285  may  not  improbably  be 
the  pommel  of  the  hilt  of  a  dagger  or  sword.  The  hole  through  the  base 
is  irregular  in  form,  and  may  be  accidental.  It  was  found  in  the  hoard 
at  Eeach  Fen,  Cambridge,  in  which  were  also  the  tip  of  a  scabbard  and 
some  fragments  of  swords,  as  well  as  two  large  double-edged  knives. 

*  "Ancient  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  124,  unpub.  pi.  xv.  B;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  503,  fig.  196. 
t  "Ancient  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  201,  pi.  xxv.  4  ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  453. 


230     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED    BLADES.      [CHAP.  X. 

A  somewhat  similar  object  is  in  the  Musee  de  1'Oratoire,  at  Nantes. 
Another,  found  at  Gresine,*  Savoy,  has  been  regarded  as  the  tip  for  a 
scabbard.  Another  was  found  in  the  department  of  La  Manche.f 

What  appears  to  be  the  hilt  of  either  a  sword  or  dagger  was  found  in 
a  hoard  of  bronze  objects  at  AUhallows,J  Hoo,  Kent.  By  the  kindness  of 
Mr.  Humphrey  Wickham  I  am  able  to  engrave  it  as  Fig.  286.  It  con- 
sisted originally  of  a  rectangular  socketed  ferrule  with  a  rivet-hole 
through  it,  and  attached  to  a  semicircular  end  like  the  half  of  a  grooved 
pulley.  The  socket  itself  extends  for  some  distance  into  this  semi- 
circular part.  From  portions  of  a  sword  having  been  found  with  it, 
Mr.  Wickham  has  regarded  it  as  a  kind  of  pommel.  It  may,  however^ 


Fig.  286— AllhaUows,  Hoo. 

have  been  the  end  of  a  scabbard  or  a  chape,  and,  if  so,  should  have  been 
described  in  Chapter  XIII.  The  knife,  Fig.  261,  was  found  in  the  same 
hoard. 

To  return,  however,  to  undoubted  examples.  The  most  remark- 
able of  all  dagger  handles  discovered  in  the  British  Isles  are  those 
obtained  by  Sir  R.  Colt  Hoare  from  the  barrows  of  Wiltshire. 

One  of  these,  from  a  barrow  at  Brigmilston,§  is  here  reproduced  in 
Fig.  287,  taken  from  the  engraving  in  "Ancient  Wiltshire."  It  is  thus 
described  by  the  late  Dr.  Thurnam:  "It  is  of  the  thin  broad-bladed 
variety.  The  handle  is  of  wood,  held  together  by  thirty  rivets  of  bronze, 
and  strengthened  at  the  end  by  an  oblong  bone  pommel  fastened  with 
two  pegs.  It  is  decorated  by  dots  incised  in  the  surface  of  the  wood, 
forming  a  border  of  double  lines  and  circles  between  the  heads  of  the 
rivets."  He  goes  on  to  say  that  a  similar  dagger  of  the  broad  variety, 
having  exactly  the  same  number  of  rivets,  was  found  in  one  of  the  Derby- 
shire ||  barrows.  Two  buttons  of  polished  shale  accompanied  this  inter- 
ment. Another,  from  Garton,^[  Yorkshire,  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
Mortimer,  has  thirty-seven  rivets  and  two  strips  of  bronze  at  the  sides 
of  the  handle,  in  addition  to  the  four  rivets  for  securing  the  blade.  The 
bone  pommel  is  shown  in  Fig.  282. 

*  "Exp.  Arch,  de  la  Sav.,"  1878,  pi.  xii.  357. 

f  "Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  Norm.,"  1827—8,  pi.  xix.  4,  5. 

^  Arch.  Cant.,  vol.  xi.  p.  125,  pi.  c,  18. 

\  "Ancient  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  185,  pi.  xxiii. ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  458,  pi.  xxxiv.  2. 

||  Bateman,  "  Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  68.          1i  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  462,  pi.  xxxiv.  3. 


HILTS   WITH    NUMEROUS    RIVETS. 


231 


Another  dagger,  of  somewhat  the  same  character,  was  found  at 
Leicester,  and  is  preserved  in  the  museum  of  that  town.  For  the  sketch 
from  which  Fig.  288  is  engraved  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  C.  Bead.  In 
this  instance  the  pommel  consists  of  two  pieces  of  bone  riveted  on  either 
side  of  a  bronze  plate,  which,  however,  does  not  appear  to  have  been 
continuous  with  the  blade.  From  the  length  of  the  rivets  remaining 


Fig.  287.-Brigmilston. 


Fig.  288.  -Leicester. 


in  the  blade,  the  handle  appears  to  have  been  somewhat  thicker  in  the 
middle  than  at  the  sides. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  dagger  from  a  barrow  at  Standlow,  Derby- 
shire, with  a  bone  pommel  of  nearly  the  same  character  as  that  from 
Leicester. 

Perhaps  the  most  highly  ornamented  dagger  handle  ever  discovered  is 


232     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.   X. 

that  which  was  found  by  Sir  R.  Colt  Hoare  in  the  Bush  Barrow,*  near 
Normanton,  the  lower  part  of  which,  copied  from  the  engraving  in 
"Ancient  Wiltshire,"  is  shown  in  Fig.  289.  A  drawing  of  the  whole 
dagger  with  its  handle  restored  has  been  published  by  Dr.  Thurnam.f 
The  blade  is  10£  inches  long  and  slightly  fluted  at  the  sides,  so  that  it  is 
not,  strictly  speaking,  a  knife-dagger  such  as  those  hitherto  described.  It 
appears,  however,  best  to  call  attention  to  it  in  this  place.  It  lay  with  a 
skeleton  placed  north  and  south,  with  which  were  some  rivets  and  thin 
plates  of  bronze,  supposed  to  be  traces  of  a  shield.  At  the  shoulders  was  a 
flanged  bronze  celt,  like  Fig.  9.  Near  the  right  arm  was  the  dagger  and 
"  a  spear-head  "  of  bronze.  These  were  accompanied  by  a  nearly  square 
plate  of  thin  gold,  with  a  projecting  flat  tongue  or  hook,  which  was 


Fig.  289. — Normantoii. 

thought  to  have  decorated  the  sheath  of  the  dagger.  Over  the  breast  lay 
another  lozenge-shaped  plate  of  gold,  7  inches  by  6  inches,  the  edges 
lapped  over  a  piece  of  wood.  On  the  right  side  of  the  skeleton  was  a 
stone  hammer,]:  some  articles  of  bone,  many  small  rings  of  the  same 
material,  and  another  gold  lozenge  much  smaller  than  that  on  the  breast. 
As  to  the  handle,  I  may  repeat  Sir  Richard's  words :  "It  exceeds  any- 
thing we  have  yet  seen,  both  in  design  and  execution,  and  could  not  be 
surpassed  (if,  indeed,  equalled)  by  the  most  able  workman  of  modern 
times.  By  the  annexed  engraving  you  will  immediately  recognise  the 
British  zig-zag  or  the  modern  Vandyke  pattern,  which  was  formed,  with  a 
labour  and  exactness  almost  unaccountable,  by  thousands  of  gold  rivets 
smaller  than  the  smallest  pin.  The  head  of  the  handle,  though  exhibiting 

*  "Ancient  Wills,"  vol.  i.  p.  202,  pi.  xxvii.  2.          t  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxv.  1. 
}.  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  203,  fig.  154. 


INLAID   AND    IVORY    HILTS. 


233 


no  variety  of  pattern,  was  also  formed  by 
the  same  kind  of  studding.  So  very  minute, 
indeed,  were  these  pins,  that  our  labourers 
had  thrown  out  thousands  of  them  with  their 
shovels  and  scattered  them  in  every  direction 
before,  by  the  necessary  aid  of  a  magnifying 
glass,  we  could  discover  what  they  were,  but 
fortunately  enough  remained  attached  to  the 
wood  to  enable  us  to  develop  the  pattern." 
Some  of  the  pins  are  shown  in  the  figure 
below  the  hilt. 

As  Dr.  Thurnam  has  pointed  out,  the 
ornamentation  on  a  thin  piece  of  metal  (said 
to  have  been  gilt),  which  apparently  de- 
corated the  hilt  of  a  bronze  dagger,  found  in 
a  barrow  in  Dorsetshire,*  is  of  the  same 
character,  though  produced  in  a  different 
manner.  This  dagger  is  said  by  Douglas  to 
have  been  "  incisted  "  into  wood.  It  is  uncer- 
tain whether  this  refers  to  the  hilt  or  to  the 
sheath ;  but  in  several  instances  remains  of 
sheaths  have  been  found  upon  the  blades  of 
daggers,  some  of  which  have  been  already 
adduced,  and  others  will  hereafter  be  men- 
tioned. Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare,  in  a  barrow  near 
Amesbury,f  found  an  interment  of  burnt 
bones,  and  with  it  a  bronze  dagger  which  had 
been  "secured  by  a  sheath  of  wood  lined 
with  linen  cloth."  A  small  lance-head,  a  pair 
of  ivory  nippers,  and  an  ivory  pin  accom- 
panied the  interment.  In  one  instance  the 
wood  of  the  sheath  was  ' '  apparently  willow."  J 

I  am  unable  to  guarantee  the  accuracy 
of  the  representation  of  a  large  dagger 
with  its  handle  given  in  Fig.  290,  the  ori- 
ginal having  unfortunately  been  destroyed 
in  a  fire.  I  have,  however,  copied  it  from  Dr. 
Thurnam's§  engraving,  which  was  taken 
from  a  drawing  by  the  late  Mr.  S.  Solly, 
P. 8. A. ||  It  was  found  in  1845,  in  a  barrow 
on  Eoke  Down,  near  Blandf ord,  Dorsetshire, 
and  is  thus  described  by  Mr.  Shipp  :  ^  "  The 
blade  is  exquisitely  finished,  and  the  handle, 
which  is  ivory,  as  perfect  and  as  highly 
polished  as  any  of  more  recent  date.  It  was 
found  with  two  small  bronze  spear-heads  at 
the  bottom  of  a  cist  cut  in  the  chalk,  and 

*  Douglas,  "  Nenia,"  p.  153,  pi.  xxxiii.  fig.  3. 

t  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  207. 

J  Op.  cit.,  p.  194. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxiv.  1. 

||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  1st  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  75. 

H  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  98 ;  vol.  xv.  p.  228. 


Fig.  290.-Roke  Down. 


234     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS.— RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [cHAP.   X. 

covered  with  burnt  bones  and  ashes ;  and  over  it  was  an  inverted  urn 
of  the  coarsest  make,  unburnt  and  unornamented."  In  Mr.  Shipp's 
drawing  the  handle  expands  gradually  to  the  base  like  the  mouth  of  a 
trumpet.  In  a  subsequent  communication  *  Mr.  Shipp  describes  the  two 
spear-heads  as  of  iron. 

Mr,  Solly  f  says  that  with  it  was  a  second  small  blade,  also  of  bronze, 
which  may  have  been  a  knife,  and  makes  no  mention  of  iron  spear-heads. 
He  also  says  that  it  lay  beneath  a  stone  more  than  a  ton  in  weight. 
Mr.  C.  Warne,  F.S.A.,  has  informed  me  that  the  spear-heads — if,  indeed, 
such  they  were — were  of  bronze  and  not  of  iron.  He  has  engraved  the 
dagger  in  his  Plate  X.,J  not  from  the  original,  but  from  the  figure  in  the 
Journal  of  the  Arch&ological  Association. 

Hilts  made  of  bronze,  though  of  frequent  occurrence  in  Scandinavia, 
the  South  of  France,  and  Italy,  are  rarely  discovered  in  England  or  Scot- 
land. That  said  to  have  been  found  at  Bere  Hill,  near  Andover,  cast  in 
one  piece  with  the  blade  and  with  a  raised  rim  round  the  margin,  and 
studs  like  rivet-heads  in  the  middle,  has  been  kindly  submitted  to  me  by 
Mr.  Samuel  Shaw,  its  owner,  and  I  believe  it  to  be  of  Eastern  and  pro- 
bably Chinese  origin.  Near  Little  Weiilock,§  however,  a  portion  of  a 
dagger  was  found  with  part  of  the  handle,  in  form  like  that  of  the  sword 
from  Lincoln  (Fig.  350),  attached  by  four  rivets.  With  it  were  a  socketed 
celt,  some  spear-heads,  and  whetstones. 

A  beautiful  Egyptian  ||  bronze  dagger  from  Thebes  is  in  the  Berlin 
Museum.  It  has  a  narrow  rapier-like  blade  and  a  broad  flat  hilt  of  ivory. 

Others  of  nearly  the  same  character  are  in  the  British  Museum.  The 
end  of  the  hilt  is  often  hollowed,  like  that  of  Fig.  277,  and  the  attach- 
ment to  the  blade  is  by  means  of  three  rivets. 

In  Ireland  a  few  daggers  have  been  found  with  bronze  hilts 
still  attached. 

In  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  is  a  fine  example,  which  has 
frequently  been  published,  and  which  I  have  here  reproduced  as  Fig.  291, 
from  the  engraving  given  by  Wilde,  ^[  but  on  the  scale  of  one-half.  Both 
blade  and  handle  are  "  highly  ornamented,  both  in  casting  and  also  by 
the  punch  or  graver." 

A  portion  of  a  blade  with  a  bronze  hilt  still  attached  was  found  near 
Belleek,  Co.  Fermanagh,  and  has  been  engraved  in  the  Proceedings  of  the 
Royal  Historical  and  Archaeological  Association  of  Ireland.**  The  cut  is  by 
their  kindness  here  reproduced  as  Fig.  292.  The  handle  is  hollow,  and 
the  blade  appears  to  have  been  originally  attached  by  four  pins  or  rivets, 
of  which  but  two  now  remain.  Possibly  the  other  two  were  of  horn. 

Another  Irish  form  of  hafted  dagger  has  also  been  frequently  pub- 
lished.ff  It  is  shown  in  Fig.  293.  Vallancey  describes  this  specimen  as 

*  Arch.  Assoe.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  100.  f  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  459. 

I  "  Celtic  Tumuli  of  Dorset,"  pi.  ii.  p.  17. 

$  Hartshorne's  "  Salop.  Ant.,"  p.  96,  No.  7. 

||  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "Die  Bronze  schwerter  des  K.  Mus.,"  Taf.  xvi.  31 ;  Wilkin- 
son's "  Ancient  Egyptians,"  vol.  i.  p.  320.  Another  dagger  with  a  hilt  is  figured  at 
p.  23. 

IT  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  458,  fig.  334 ;  "  Hora  Ferales,"  pi.  vii.  14. 

**  Proc.,  4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  196. 

ft  Vallancey,  "Coll.,"  vol.  iv.  p.  61,  pi.  xi.  4  ;  Gough's  "  Camden,"  vol.  iv.  pi  xviii. 
4;  Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  467,  fig.  354;  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vii.  13. 


HfLTS   OF    BRONZE. 


235 


cast  in  one  piece,  the  rivets  being  either  ornamental  or  intended  to  stop 
against  the  top  of  the  scabbard.     No  doubt  these  imitation  rivets  are 


Fig.  291.— Ireland. 


Fig.  292-Belleek. 


Fig.  293.— Ireland.     J 

mere  "  survivals  "  from  those  of  the  daggers,  which  were  thus  fastened 
to  their  handles  before  it  was  found  that  it  saved  trouble  to  cast  the  whole 
in  one  piece.  The  hole  in  the  handle,  the  sides  of  which  are  left  rough, 


236    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

was  probably  filled  by  two  slightly  overlapping  plates  of  wood  or  horn 

riveted  together. 

Another*   (14J   inches)  was  thought  to  have  the  "loop-fashioned" 

handle   for  suspending  the  weapon  to  a  thong  or  the  belt.     I  think, 

however,  that  when  the  daggers  were  in  use  the  handles  were  to  all 
appearance  solid.  In  one  found  in  Dunshaugh- 
lin  f  crannoge,  Co.  Heath,  there  is  a  second  oval 
hole  at  the  end  of  the  hilt,  which  may  have 
been  used  for  suspension. 

There  is  a  good  example  of  this  type  of  dagger 
in  the  Blackmore  Museum  at  Salisbury. 

A  small  dagger  (7-g-  inches),  found  near  Balli- 
namore,J  Co.  Leitrim,  has  an  extension  of  the 
blade  in  the  form  of  a  thin  plate  with  a  button 
at  the  bottom  so  as  to  form  the  body  of  the 
handle.  In  this  part  are  two  rivet  holes  for  the 
attachment  of  the  plates  of  wood  or  horn  to 
form  the  handle. 

Some  handles  of  bronze  knives  found  in  Scan- 
dinavia and  Switzerland  §  are  formed  with  similar 
openings.  Daggers  with  the  blade  and  handle 
cast  in  one  piece  have  been  found  in  the  Italian 
terramare.  ||  I  have  a  dagger  of  the  same  kind  from 
Hungary. 

I  must  now  return,  from  this  digression 
as  to  the  hafting  of  daggers,  to  the  thin 
blades  or  knife-daggers  of  which  I  was 
speaking. 

Of  those  with  four  rivets  but  few  can  be  cited. 
One  of  unusually  large  size  is  shown  in  Fig.  294. 
The  original  was  found  by  Sir  R.  C.  Hoare  in  a 
barrow  at  "Woodyates.^f  It  was  protected  by  a 
wooden  scabbard.  A  perforated  ring  and  two 
buttons  of  jet,  four  barbed  flint  arrow-heads,  and 
a  bronze  pin  were  found  with  the  same  skeleton. 
This  blade,  like  many  others,  is  described  as 
having  been  gilt,  but  this  can  hardly  have  been 
the  case.  Dr.  Thurnam  **  has  tested  such  bril- 
ltes-  *  liantly  polished  surfaces  for  gold,  but  found  no 

traces  of  that  metal. 

A  blade  of  this  form  is  engraved  in  the  "  Barrow  Diggers,"  f  f  but  is 
described  as  a  stone  celt  split  in  two. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  161. 

t  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  466,  fig.  353. 

J  Wade,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  463,  fig.  346. 

§  "Cong,  preh.,"  Stockholm  vol.,  1874,  p.  521;  Keller's  "  Lake-dweU.,"  Eng.  ed., 
pi.  xli.  5. 

||  Strobel,  "Avanzi  Preromani,"  1863,  Tav.  ii.  35;  Gastaldi,  "  Nuovi  Cemri,"  1862, 
Tav.  ii.  7. 

If  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  239,  pi.  xxxiv. 

*«  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  455.  ft  P.  74,  pi.  ii.  fig.  3. 


KNIFE-DAGGERS   WITH    FIVE   OR   SIX    RIVETS. 


237 


A  nearly  similar  blade  from  Oefeli*  (Lac  de  Bienne)  is  said  to  be  of 
copper. 

In  Fig.  295  is  shown  a  blade  with  five  rivets,  from  an  interment  at 
Homington,f  near  Salisbury,  which  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  One 
side  is  still  highly  polished,  with  an  almost  mirror-like  lustre.  The  mark 
of  the  hilt  is  very  distinct  upon  it. 

One  of  more  pointed  form,  and  with  a  more  V-shaped  notch  in  the 
hilt,  was  found  with  an  unburnt  body  in  a  cairn  at  North  Charlton, 


Fig.  295.— Homington. 


Fig.  296. -Mansion. 


Northumberland,  and  is  in  the  Greenwell  Collection  in  the  British  Museum. 
The  portion  is  broken  off  in  which  were  the  rivets. 

Occasionally  the  surface  of  these  thin  blades  is  ornamented  by  engraved 
or  punched  patterns.  The  decoration  usually  consists  of  converging  bands 
of  parallel  lines.  The  example  given  as  Fig.  296  was  found  in  a  barrow 
at  Idmiston,  near  Salisbury,  and  is  now  preserved  in  the  Blackmore 
Museum.  In  one  found  in  Dow  Low,!  Derbyshire,  shown  in  Fig.  297, 
there  are  three  parallel  lines  on  either  side  which  meet  in  chevron.  This 
blade  has  two  rivets. 

In  a  barrow  near  Maiden  Castle,  §  Dorchester,  opened  by  Mr.  Syden- 
ham,  there  lay  in  the  midst  of  the  ashes  two  bronze  daggers.  One 

*  Gross,  "  Deux  Stations,"  pi.  iv.  3. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  329;  "Horae  Ferales,"  p.  158,  pi.  vii.  21;  Arch.,  vol. 
xliii.  pi.  xxxiii.  1. 

t  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  96  ;  Arch.,  vol. xliii.  p.  461,  fig.  161. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  332,  pi.  xvii.  8 ;  "  Celtic  Tumuli  of  Dorset,"  pt.  iii.  p.  46 
pi.  x.  d,  e. 


238     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

(4  inches)  has  two  lines  engraved  on  it,  forming  a  chevron  parallel  with 
the  edges;  the  other  (5£  inches)  is  described  as  "curiously  wrought, 
chased,  and  gilt."  This  latter,  to  judge  from  Mr.  Warne's  engraving, 
has  a  slight  projecting  rib  along  the  middle  of  the  blade,  between  two 
others  converging  to  meet  it  near  the  point.  The  space  on  each  side  of 
the  central  rib  appears  to  be  decorated  by  small  circular  indentations. 

One  from  another  barrow  in  Dorsetshire  *  has  a  treble  chevron  on  the 
blade  and  a  straight  transverse  groove  between  two  ridges  just  above  the 
hilt. 

A  small  blade  found  in  an  urn  at  Wilmslow,f  Cheshire,  seems  to  have 
a  single  chevron  upon  it. 

A  dagger  from  a  tumulus  at  Hewelinghen  (Pas  de  Calais),  and  now  in 
the  museum  at  Boulogne,  is  of  this  character.  It  has  double  lines  to  the 
chevron  and  four  rivet-holes. 

Another  was  found  with  an  interment  at  Bame  J  (Hautes  Alpes)  in 
company  with  other  articles  of  bronze.  It  has  six  rivet-holes.  A  narrower 
blade  and  more  of  the  rapier  shape,  with  four  rivet-holes,  was  found  in 
the  Marais  de  Donges  §  (Loire  Inferieure). 

A  dagger  much  like  Fig.  296,  but  with  a  double  row  of  rivets,  has 
been  found  at  Moerigen,  ||  in  the  Lac  de  Bienne. 

A  dagger  with  a  pointed  blade  having  two  parallel  grooves  just  within 
each  edge  was  found  with  other  dagger  blades,  flat  celts,  flint  arrow- 
heads, &c.,  in  the  tumulus  of  Kerhue-Bras,  Finistere.^f  It  has  a  plain 
wooden  handle,  to  which  the  blade  is  attached  by  six  rivets.  The  character 
of  some  of  the  other  blades  is  peculiar. 

A  beautifully  patinated  dagger  (7J  inches)  from  the  Seine  at  Paris, 
now  in  my  own  collection,  has  six  rivet-holes  at  the  base,  as  in  Fig.  296, 
and  is  of  nearly  the  same  shape,  though  rather  more  sharply  pointed. 
One  of  the  rivets  which  remains  is  £  inch  long.  The  blade  has  upon  it  a 
small  low  rib  on  either  side  running  parallel  with  the  edge.  On  the 
inner  side  of  the  rib  there  is  a  groove,  on  the  outer  side  the  blade  is  flat. 
The  edge  itself  is  fluted. 

I  have  a  small  thin  blade  (4|  inches),  like  Fig.  298,  found  in  the 
Palatinate,  which  has  four  rivet-holes  at  the  base.  There  is  a  band  of 
five  parallel  lines  running  along  each  edge,  and  in  the  centre  of  the  blade 
a  chevron  with  the  sides  slightly  curved  inwards  formed  of  two  similar 
bands.  The  lines  seem  to  have  been  punched  in.  The  mark  left  by  the 
hilt  is  like  that  on  Fig.  296. 

What  appear  to  be  knife-daggers,  some  of  them  with  notches 
at  the  side  for  the  reception  of  rivets,  have  been  found  with  inter- 
ments in  Spain,  and  have  been  described  by  Don  Gongora  y 
Martinez**  as  lance-heads. 

Knife-daggers  of  much  the  same  character  as  the  English  have 
occasionally  been  found  in  Scotland. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  322. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  288,  pi.  25,  fig.  6. 

%  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiii.  p.  155. 

§  Rev.  Arch.,  vol.  xxxiii.  p.  231. 

||   Gross,  "  Deux  Stations,"  pi.  iv.  4. 

f  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xv.  p.  289. 

•*  "Ant.  Preh.  de  Andalusia,"  pp.  97,  105. 


KNIFE-DAGGERS    FROM    SCOTLAND. 


239 


That  shown  in  Fig.  298  was  found  in  a  stone  cist  in  a  cairn  at  Cleigh,* 
Loch  Nell,  Argyleshire.  Along  the  margin  of  the  original  handle  is  a 
line  of  small  indentations  made  with  a  pointed  punch. 

Another  (4J  inches)  was  found  in  a  cairn  at  Linlathen,f  Forfarshire, 
together  with  a  "  drinking  cup."  Particulars  of  the  finding  of  several 
others,  with  interments  in  sepulchral  cairns,  have  been  given  by 


Fig.  297.— Dow  Low. 

Mr.  Joseph  Anderson  j  in  an  interesting  paper,  to  which  the  reader  is 
referred. 

Three  others,  from  Drumlanrick,§  near  Callander,  Perth  (4£  inches, 
two  rivets),  Crossmichael,  Kirkcudbright- 
shire, and  Callachally,  Island  of  Mull,  are 
in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 
Another,  apparently  of  the  same  type,  was 
found  in  a  cairn  at  Collessie,  ||  Fife,  the 
handle  of  which  appears  to  have  been  en-  Fig  299.— Collessie  t 

circled  by  the  gold  fillet  shown  in  Fig.  299. 

The  sheath  seems  to  have  been  of  wood  covered  with  cow-hide,  the  hairs 
on  the  outside. 

In  Ireland  the  thin  flat  blades  are  of  rare  occurrence.  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  has  one  from  Co.  Antrim  (4|  inches)  with 
three  rivet-holes,  and  with  a  V-shaped  notch  in  the  mark  of  the 
handle. 

There  is  a  form  of  blade  which  appears  to  be  intermediate  between  the 
flat  knife-daggers  and  those  to  which  the  name  of  dagger  may  more 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  x.  pp.  84,  459.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  Society 
for  the  use  of  this  and  the  following  cut. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  449.  %  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xii.  p.  439. 

§  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  xii.  p.  456.  ||   Op.  cit,,  vol.  xii.  p.  440. 


240     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. RAPIER-SHAPED   BLADES.      [CHAP.   X. 

properly  be  applied,  which  are  either  considerably  thicker  at  the  centre 
than  towards  the  edges,  or  else  have  a  certain  number  of  strengthening 
ribs  running  along  the  blade.  This  intermediate  form  has  a  single 
narrow  rounded  rib  running  along  the  centre  of  the  blade.  That  shown 
in  Fig.  300  is  an  example  of  the  short  and  broad  variety  of  this  kind. 
It  was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Musdin,*  Staffordshire,  and  has  a  splendid 


Fig.  300.— Musdin. 


patina,  rivalling  malachite  in  colour.  The  relation  of  the  dagger  to  any 
interment  is  uncertain. 

A  dagger  of  this  class,  but  more  pointed  and  with  two  parallel  lines 
engraved  on  each  side  of  the  midrib,  was  found  by  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.E.8.,  in  one  of  the  barrows  called  the  Three  Tremblers,!  Yorkshire.  It 
showed  traces  of  both  its  handle  and  sheath.  "With  it  was  a  beautifully 
flaked  large  flint  knife. 

A  more  pointed  blade,  with  the  central  rib  much  less  pronounced,  and 

*  Bateman's  "Ten  Years'  Diggings,"  p.   148  ;  engraved  in  Arch,.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  461, 
fig.  162,  from  which  my  cut  is  copied, 
t  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  359 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  243. 


DAGGERS  WITH  ORNAMENTED  BLADES.  241 

the  notch  in  the  hilt  more  distinct,  was  found  with  a  skeleton  in  a  cist 
near  Cheswick,*  Northumberland,  and  is  now  in  the  Greenwell  Collection 
in  the  British  Museum.  It  has  been  carefully  polished. 

Another,  with  a  small,  well-defined  central  midrib  and  two  rivets,  was 
found  by  Canon  Grreenwell  in  a  barrow  at  Aldbourn,  Wilts.  It  accom- 
panied a  burnt  body. 

Some  of  the  Italian  dagger  blades  are  provided  with  similar  midribs. 

Of  the  English  weapons  just  described  some  closely  resemble  in 
character  the  much  larger  blades  of  which  I  shall  subsequently  have  to 
speak,  and  which  not  improbably  were  those  of  some  form  of  halberd  or 
battle-axe. 

A  much  longer  and  narrower  form,  in  which  the  central  rib  is  partly 
the  result  of  two  long  lateral  grooves  along  the  sides  of  the  blade,  is  shown 
in  Fig.  301.  This  was  found  with  two  others  at  Plymstock,f  Devon,  in 
company  with  flanged  celts,  a  chisel,  and  a  tanged  spear-head  or  dagger, 
Fig.  327,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

I  have  a  much  smaller  blade,  of  somewhat  the  same  character  (4£ 
inches),  but  imperfect  at  the  base,  found  in  a  barrow  near  Cirencester ; 
and  one  smaller  still  (4£  inches),  from  a  small  barrow  near  Ablington, 
Cirencester,  Gloucestershire.  This  latter  appears  to  have  had  two  rivet- 
holes. 

A  beautiful  example  of  the  form  of  dagger  of  which  Sir  "Richard  C. 
Hoare  found  numerous  examples  in  the  Wiltshire  barrows  is  shown  in 
Fig.  302.  It  lay  with  burnt  bones  in  a  wooden  cist  in  a  barrow  near 
Winterbourn  Stoke.  J  With  it  was  another,  which  was,  however,  broken, 
an  ivory  pin  and  tweezers,  and  two  small  pieces  of  ivory  with  bronze 
rivets,  which  were  supposed  to  have  appertained  to  the  tips  of  a  bow. 
They  may  more  probably  have  formed  part  of  the  hilt  of  the  dagger. 
The  blade  is  ornamented  with  parallel  lines  as  usual,  but  it  also  has  a 
series  of  fine  dotted  lines. 

Two  other  blades  (8£  and  8  inches),  less  highly  ornamented,  and  one 
of  them  straighter  at  the  edges,  were  found  with  a  skeleton  buried  in 
the  hollowed  trunk  of  an  elm-tree  in  the  King  Barrow,  §  Winterbourn 
Stoke.  With  one  of  these  at  the  breast  of  the  skeleton  were  traces  of  a 
wooden  scabbard,  with  indentations  which  were  thought  to  have  been 
gilt.  The  handle  is  described  as  having  been  of  box- wood,  and  rounded 
somewhat  like  that  of  a  large  knife.  The  other  dagger  was  at  the  thigh. 
On  the  breast  was  also  a  bronze  awl  with  what  is  said  to  have  been  an 
ivory  handle  (Fig.  227). 

Dr.  Thurnam  II  thinks  it  not  improbable  that  one  of  the  blades 
may  have  been  a  spear-head  for  use  in  the  chase.  In  writing  of 
these  blades  he  observes,  "  Where  two  are  found  with  the  same 
interment  they  are  not  exactly  of  one  type,  but  one  is  light  and 
thin  and  of  greater  breadth,  the  other  strengthened  by  a  stout 
midrib  relatively  heavier  and  of  more  pointed  or  leaf-like  form  ; 
the  rivets  also  are  larger.  In  such  cases  the  former  may,  perhaps, 

*  Raine,  "  North  Durham,"  p.  235. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  346 ;  Trans.  Devon.  Assoc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  304.  For  the  use 
of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S. 

I  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  122,  pi.  xiv.       §  Ibid.,  pi.  xv.      |!  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  456. 

R 


242 


DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [cHAP.  X. 


be  supposed  to  be  the  dagger,  the  latter  the  spear."  Sir  Richard 
Hoare  in  some  cases  discriminates  between  the  spear  and  the 
dagger  when  two  blades  were  found  ;  and  Mr.  Cunnington 
observed  in  a  barrow  at  Roundway,*  Wilts,  that  a  pointed  blade 
only  3  inches  long  with  three  rivets  had  a  wooden  shaft  about 
a  foot  in  length,  which,  as  Dr.  Thurnam  remarks,  could  not  have 
been  the  haft  of  a  dagger. 

The  fact  that  many  of  these  blades  bore  traces  of  having  had  a 
sheath  is  in  favour  of  their  being  daggers  rather  than  spear-heads, 
though  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  Homer  t  describes  Achilles 
as  drawing  the  spear  which  had  belonged  to  his  father  from  its 
sheath — 

'EK  S'opo.  crupiyyos  Trarpwiov  eoTracraT'  lyxos- 

Though  Sir  Richard  Colt  Hoare  at  first  regarded  all  these  blades 
as  spear-heads,  he  observes,  about  two-thirds  of  the  way  through  his 
first  volume,  J  "daily  experience  convinces  me  that  those  implements 
we  supposed  to  be  spear-heads,  may  more  properly  be  denominated 
daggers,  or  knives,  worn  by  the  side,  or  in  a  girdle,  and  not  affixed 
to  long  shafts  like  the  modern  lance."  Further  on,  however,  he 
mentions  a  "  spear-head  "  from  a  barrow  near  FovantJ  having  the 
greater  part  of  the  wooden  handle  adhering  to  it,  so  that  the  mode 
by  which  it  was  fastened  was  clearly  seen.  From  the  figure  given 
in  the  Archceologia,  and  in  an  unpublished  plate  of  Hoare,  this 
seems,  however,  to  have  been  a  dagger  rather  than  a  spear. 

Other  blades  of  much  the  same  character,  found  at  Everley  and  Lake. 
Wilts,  and  West  Cranmore,  Somerset,  are  figured  by  Dr.  Thurnam.  |J 
This  latter  was  found  by  my  friend  the  .late  Mr.  J.  W.  Flower,  F.G.S. 
It  is  straight  at  the  bottom  of  the  blade,  which  went  only  ±  inch 
into  the  handle  at  the  part  where  the  usual  semicircular  notch  was 
formed.  There  was  a  single  rivet  on  either  side.  The  one  preserved  is 
£  inch  long.  Another,  from  Lake,^f  is  given  by  Hoare.  It  was  found 
with  burnt  bones  and  was  accompanied  by  a  whetstone. 

Others  have  been  found  in  a  barrow  at  Ablington,**  near  Amesbury, 
Wilts,  and  at  Rowcroft,tf  Yattendon,  Berks  (7£  inches). 

A  fine  blade  of  this  character  (9J  inches  long),  with  three  rivets,  was 
found  near  Leeds.  The  midrib  ends  in  a  square  base.  It  is  not  unlike 
the  blade  of  a  halberd. 

A  hafted  blade  of  the  same  kind,}*  from  Bere  Regis,  Dorsetshire,  has 
already  been  mentioned ;  as  well  as  the  decoration  of  the  hilt  of  one  of 
the  same  form.  One  (9  inches)  was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Came,§§  and 

*   Wilts  Arch.  Mag.,  vol.  vi.  p.  164.  f  Iliad,  lib.  xix.  v.  387. 

§  Op.  cit.,  p.  242. 

|j  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  pi.  xxxiv.  fig.  4 ;  xxxv.  figs.  2,  4. 

T  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  211,  pi.  xxviii.       '     *»  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  248. 

Tt  Arch.  Atsoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  334.  tl  Ante  p   233 

§§  Arch  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  322. 


DAGGERS   WITH   MIDRIBS. 


243 


exhibited  to  the  Archaeological  Institute.  Mr.  Warne,*  however,  records 
the  finding  of  two  at  that  place.  One  seems  to  have  the  midrib  dotted 
over  with  small  indentations. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  303  (which  is  copied  from  Dr.  Thurnam's  f  engrav- 
ing) is  from  Camerton,  Somerset.  It  is  remarkable  as  having  a  kind  of 
second  midrib  beyond  the  parallel  grooves  which  border  the  first.  As 
usual  it  has  but  two  rivets. 

A  bronze  dagger  (5£  inches)  of  the  Wiltshire  type  was  found  in  the 
well-known  barrow  at  Hove,}  near  Brighton,  in  which  the  interment  had 
been  made  in  an  oak  coffin. 
An  amber  cup,  a  perforated 
stone  axe-hammer,  and  a 
whetstone  had  also  been  de- 
posited with  the  body. 

In  a  blade  of  this  class  (7 
inches),  found  with  burnt 
bones  and  chippings  of  flint 
in  a  barrow  at  Teddington,§ 
the  midrib  appears  to  be 
formed  of  three  beads. 

Another  (9  inches)  formed 
part  of  the  Arreton  Down  || 
find,  of  which  more  will  here- 
after be  said.  The  blade 
is  ornamented  with  delicate 
flutings  and  curves,  and  the 
midrib  ends  in  a  crescented 
hollow  exactly  opposite  to  the 
usual  notch  in  the  handle. 
This  specimen  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum. 

A  bronze  dagger  (6  J  inches) 
with  three  rivets,  of  which 
the  blade  has  much  suffered 
from  decomposition,  was 
found  with  a  lump  of  iron 
pyrites  within  an  urn  in  a 
barrow  at  Angrowse  Mul- 
lion.ff  Cornwall.  A  dagger  blade  of  nearly  the  same  kind,  but  with  six 
rivets,  found  in  a  barrow  at  Carnoel,**  Finistere,  is  in  the  museum  at 
the  Hotel  Cluny,  Paris. 

I  have  a  dagger  (9  inches)  much  like  Fig.  302,  only  somewhat  more 
taper,  found  in  the  Seine  at  Paris.  It  has  had  three  rivet-holes,  and  on 
the  blade  are  two  bands  of  four  lines  parallel  with  the  edge. 

The  strengthening  of  the  blade  is  sometimes  effected  by  forming  it 
with  three  or  more  projecting  ribs  instead  of  a  single  midrib.  In 
Fig.  304  is  shown  a  dagger  blade  in  my  own  collection,  found  not  far 

*  "  Celtic  Turn."  pt.  i.  p.  35,  pi.  x.  E.  and  G.        t  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  453,  fig.  157. 
J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  184  ;  vol.  xv.  p.  90;  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ix.  p.  120. 
§  Surrey  Arch.  Soc.  Trans.,  vol.  i.  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  30-5. 
I!   Arch.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  328,  pi.  xxv.  fig.  6;  "Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vii.  18 
H  Borlase,  "Nsenia  Corn.,"  p.  236. 

**  Lindenschmit,  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  xi.  Taf.  ii.  1. 
R  2 


Fig.  303.— Camerton.    J         Fig.  304.— Cambridge, 


244    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

from  Cambridge.  On  either  side  of  the  central  rib  and  along  the  outer 
margin  of  the  two  other  ribs  are  lines  of  minute  punctures  by  way  of 
ornament. 

A  somewhat  larger  blade  (8f  inches),  from  Little  Cressingham,*  Nor- 
folk, has  two  deep  furrows,  one  on  each  side  of  the  broad  central  midrib, 
and  beyond  these  again  two  lateral  ribs.  This  was  secured  to  its  hilt  by 
six  rivets,  three  on  each  side.  It  was  found  with  a  contracted  male 
skeleton,  accompanied  by  a  necklace  of  amber  beads  and  some  articles 
made  of  thin  gold  plate. 

A  dagger  with  a  central  rounded  midrib,  and  apparently  two  lateral 
ribs  like  those  on  Fig.  304,  was  found  in  a  barrow  near  Torrington,f 
Devon.  It  has  three  rivets,  by  which  it  was  attached  to  a  wooden  handle, 
and  the  blade  showed  traces  of  a  wooden  sheath,  which  like  the  handle 
had  perished. 

A  very  small  dagger  or  knife,  with  apparently  a  well-marked  central 
rib,  found  near  Magherafelt,J  Co.  Londonderry,  is  shown  in  Fig.  305. 
It  has  a  haft  of  oak  attached,  which  is  thought  to  be  original.  Any 
pins  or  rivets  that  may  have  existed  are  now  lost,  and  possibly  what  were 
used  may  have  been  formed  of  wood  or  horn.  Some  thin  wedges  of  oak 
appear  to  have  been  used  for  steadying  the  blade  in  the  haft,  the  upper 
part  of  which  has  somewhat  suffered  from  fire. 

One  of  the  daggers  from  the  great  find  at  Arreton  Down,§  Isle  of 
Wight  (9£  inches),  has  the  blade  strengthened  by  three  raised  ribs.  It  is 
shown  in  Fig.  306.  It  was  found  with  several  tanged  blades  like 
Fig.  324,  some  flanged  celts,  and  other  objects.  In  a  blade  (9  inches) 
in  Canon  Greenwell's  collection,  and  found  at  Ford,  Northumberland, 
there  are  two  slight  ribs  about  f  inch  from  the  edges  and  parallel  to 
them.  There  are  punctures  along  the  sides  of  the  ribs. 

Possibly  some  of  these  weapons  may  have  been  halberd  blades,  such 
as  those  hereafter  described. 

Another  form  of  dagger  widens  out  considerably  at  the  base,  so  as  to 
give  the  edges  an  ogival  outline,  and  this  form  passes  into  what  have 
been  termed  rapier-like  blades.  As  is  the  case  with  the  leaf-shaped 
blades,  which  will  presently  be  described,  some  of  these  latter  are  so 
long  that  it  is  hard  to  say  whether  they  ought  to  be  classed  as  swords  or 
as  daggers. 

The  example  engraved  as  Fig.  307  is  from  Scotland,  and  not  England, 
the  original  being  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh.  It  was 
found  in  1828  upon  the  farm  of  Kilrie,  near  Kinghorn,  Fifeshire.  The 
blade,  as  is  usually  the  case,  shows  a  central  ridge  upon  it,  but  is  also 
ornamented  with  parallel  lines  engraved  on  either  side,  which  is  a  feature 
of  far  less  common  occurrence. 

A  plain  blade  of  the  same  character  (7£  inches),  but  narrower  in  its 
proportions,  was  found  at  Bracklesham,  ||  Sussex.  It  has  as  usual  two 
rivets  only. 

I  have  another  (7i  inches),  showing  four  facets  on  the  blade,  from 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  456 ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  454,  fig.  158. 

t  Trans.  Devon.  Astoc.,  vol.  vii.  p.  104. 

J  Journ.  Royal  Hist,  and  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  286,  whence  this 
cut  has  been  kindly  lent. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  328,  pi.  xxv.  5,  from  which  the  cut  is  copied. 

||  Dixon's  "  Geol.  of  Sussex,"  p.  12;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  viii.  p.  112;  Suss.  Arch. 
Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p  260. 


DAGGERS    WITH    OGIVAL   OUTLINE. 


245 


Soham  Fen ;  the  two  rivet-holes  cut  through  the  margin  of  the  base,  as  in 
Fig.  304. 

I  have  seen  others  from  the  Cambridge  Fens. 

Another  (13£  inches)  with  four  rivets,  and  more  nearly  approaching 
the  rapier  form,  was  found  in  the  Thames  at  Ditton,*  Surrey,  and  was 
presented  to  the  British  Museum  by  the  Earl  of  Lovelace.  Another  of  the 


Fig.  307. — Kinghorn.    i 

same  character  (7  inches)  was  found  in  the  Thames  near  Maidenhead,! 
and  another  (8  inches)  at  Battersea.J 

One  (9f  inches)  with  two  rivets,  and  the  base  forming  half  a  hexagon, 
was  found  at  New  Bilton,§  near  Eugby.  I  have  another  of  nearly  the 
same  form  (7|  inches)  from  Waterbeach  Fen,  Cambridge. 


Fig.  in  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  364. 
A.  A.  J.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  329. 


t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  311. 
§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  50. 


246     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HTLTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 


In  some  the  blade  is  ornamented  by  ribs  cast  in  relief  and  by  engrav- 
ing. A  good  example  of  the  kind  from  the  collection  of  Mr.  Robert  Day, 
F.S.A.,  is  shown  in  Fig.  308.  It  was  found  in  the  old  castle  of  Colloony,* 
Co.  Sligo.  One  of  much  the  same  form  as  the  Wiltshire  dagger  (Fig.  302), 
found  in  the  Thames,!  near  Richmond  (7^-  inches),  has  at  the  base  a 
vandyke  border  and  hatched  diagonal  bands.  The  blade  is  slightly  ridged 
but  not  otherwise  ornamented.  It  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  One 
(5£  inches),  ornamented  at  the  base  in  a  similar  manner,  but  with  a  short 


Fig.308.-Colloony. 


Fig.  309.— Ireland. 


broad  tang  and  one  rivet-hole,  was  found  on  Helsington  Peat  Moss,J 
Westmoreland. 

A  blade  (7  inches)  also  ornamented  at  the  base  with  a  vandyke  pattern 
was  found  at  Pitkaithly,  Perthshire,  and  is  now  in  the  museum  at 
Edinburgh. 

Many  blades  of  daggers  from  Germany  are  ornamented.  One  of  the 
most  beautiful  that  I  have  seen  is  that  in  the  museum  at  Laibach, 
Carniola.  Another  (11^  inches),  with  the  hilt  complete,  and  the  blade 
and  pommel-plate  beautifully  ornamented,  was  found  near  Vienna.  §  Von 
Sacken  points  out  that  from  the  shortness  of  the  hilt  it  is  probable  that 
these  daggers  were  held  in  the  same  manner  as  among  the  Peruvians  of 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  268. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  79;  "  Horse  Feralea,"  pi.  vii.  19. 

I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  370. 

$  Von^Sacken,  "Die  Funden an der Langen  Wand  bei  Wiener  Neustadt,"  1865,  p.  6. 


RAPIER-SHAPED    BLADES. 


247 


the  present  day,  with  the  two  first  fingers  not  round  the  hilt,  but  stretched 
along  the  blade. 

In  the  museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy*  is  a  broad  dagger  blade 
6|  inches  long,  and  engraved  with  a  kind  of  vandyke  pattern  at  the  base. 
The  ornamented  portion  is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  309,  kindly  lent  me  by 
the  Academy.  It  is  rather  remarkable  that  the  ornaments  should  extend 
to  so  near  the  base,  as  they  must  have  been  intended  to  be  free  of  the 
hilt,  in  which,  in  consequence,  it  would  appear  that  only  a  small  part  of 
the  blade  can  have  been  inserted.  The  sides  of  the  socket  in  the  hilt  may, 
however,  have  extended  some 
distance  up  the  sloping  part 
of  the  base  of  the  blade. 

An  ornamented  blade  of 
more  elongated  form  (16^ 
inches)  is  engraved  on  the 
scale  of  one-fourth  in  Fig.  310. 
It  was  found  at  Kilrea,  Co. 
Sligo,  and  is  in  the  collection 
of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S. 
There  is  a  vandyke  pattern 
near  the  base,  which  is  not 
shown  in  the  cut. 

I  have  a  plain  blade  (14 
inches)  with  merely  a  central 
ridge,  and  with  two  rivet- 
holes,  which  is  also  from  Ire- 
land, and  of  much  the  same 
form. 

In  a  small  English  blade 
(5  inches)  of  the  same  charac- 
ter there  are  no  rivet-holes  at 
the  base. 

A  blade  from  the  Thames  f 
of  an  ordinary  rapier  shape  is 
shown  on  the  scale  of  one- 
fourth  in  Fig.  31  1.  It  is  pro- 
vided with  two  rivets,  and 
there  are  notches  at  the  side 


1 


Fig.  311. 
Thames.    J 


of  the  base  as  if  to  allow  of 
two  others  being  passed 
through  the  hilt  to  steady 
the  blade. 

A  blade  of  the  same  form 
(10  inches),  but  with  only  two  rivet-holes  at  the  base,  was  found  at  the 
foot  of  "the  Castle  Tump,"  Newchurch,J  Radnorshire. 

Rapier-shaped  blades  from  8£  inches  to  12£  inches  long,  found  at 
Auchtennuchty,  Fife;  at  Fairholm,  Dumfries-shire;  and  near  Ardoch, 
Perthshire,  are  preserved  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 

Fig.  312  represents  a  small  blade  of  this  character  dredged  up  from  the 
Kennet  and  Avon  Canal,  between  Theale  and  Thatcham,  Berks,  and 

*  Wilde,  "  Catal.,"  p.  465,  fig.  347.     t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  403,  fig.  6, 
I  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  19. 


248    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [eHAP.   X. 

given  me  by  Mr.  W.  Whitaker,  F.G.S.     The  two  little  notches  at  the 
side  of  the  base  are  peculiar. 

A  number  of  blades  of  this  character,  but  without  these  small  notches, 
have  been  found  in  the  Cambridgeshire  Fens.  Mr.  Fisher,  of  Ely,  has 
four,  varying  in  length  from  8  inches  to  9  inches,  about  2  inches  wide  at 
the  base  and  1  inch  in  the  middle  of  the  blade.  They  all  have  two  rivet- 
holes,  in  some  of  which  are  rivets  £  inch  long. 

Two  blades  found  at  South  Kyme,*  Lincolnshire,  seem  to  have  been  of 
this  character.  Another  (13£  inches)  was  found  at  Corbridge,f  Northum- 
berland, in  company  with  a  leaf-shaped  spear-head.  One  from  Burwell 
Fen,  in  my  own  collection,  has  three  rivet-holes,  in  which  are  still  two  of 
the  rivets,  of  which  one  is  formed  from  a  nearly  square  piece  of  metal. 
A  long  blade  of  this  kind  (16£  inches),  but  with  the  blade  tapering  more 
gradually  from  a  rounded  base,  was  dredged  from  the  Thames  J  near 
Vauxhall.  Other  rapier-shaped  blades  (18|  inches  and  14/0  inches)  have 
been  found  in  the  Thames  near  Kingston.  § 

The  base  of  these  blades  appears  sometimes  to  be  disproportionately 
broad  with  regard  to  the  blades  themselves.  ATI  example  from  Coveney, 
near  Downham  Hithe,  Cambridgeshire,  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Fisher, 
of  Ely,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  313.  This  widening  was  no  doubt  intended 
to  aid  in  steadying  the  blade  in  its  hilt. 

I  have  a  dagger  of  the  same  form  (8  inches),  but  with  a  more  tapering 
blade,  found  in  Waterbeach  Fen,  Cambridge.  Another  (11£  inches), 
from  Harlech,  Merionethsliire,  is  even  narrower  in  the  blade  than  the 
Coveney  example,  but  it  has  lost  its  edges  by  corrosion. 

Some  blades,  from  12£  inches  to  15£  inches  long,  and  rapier-like  in 
character,  from  Maentwrog  in  the  same  county,  are  engraved  in  the  ArcJueo- 
logia,\  and  are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The  rivet  arrangements  vary. 
A  spear-head,  with  loops  attached  to  the  blade,  was  found  with  them. 
One  of  them  has  notches  at  the  sides  of  the  base,  as  in  Fig.  311. 

One  14  J  inches  long,  and  of  much  the  same  outline,  but  flat  in  the 
centre  instead  of  ridged,  was  found  at  Fisherton,^f  near  Salisbury,  and  is 
in  the  Blackmore  Museum.  Another  of  the  same  character,  but  broad 
in  the  blade  (16£  inches),  was  found  in  the  Thames.** 

Canon  Greenwell  has  two  rapier-like  blades  from  the  Thames,  17 £ 
inches  and  15f  inches  long,  from  Sandford.  With  the  latter  was  found 
a  leaf -shaped  blade  (19  inches)  with  two  rivet-holes  in  the  base. 

Such  blades  are  almost  long  enough  to  be  regarded  as  swords. 

A  weapon  of  this  form(16£  inches),  with  the  blade  reduced  in  thickness 
towards  the  edges,  and  with  two  large  rivets,  one  of  them  still  in  situ, 
was  found  in  the  Thames,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  Another  in 
the  same  collection  (12$  inches),  from  the  Thames  at  Kingston,  is  much 
narrower  at  the  base. 

A  blade  of  this  character  from  Blair  Drummond  Moss  was  exhibited 
in  the  museum  at  Edinburgh,  and  is  preserved  at  Blair  Drummond 
House. 

The  type  occurs  in  France.  One  found  at  Auxonne,ff  Haute  Saone,  is 
in  the  St.  Germain  Museum. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  73.  t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  363. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  60.  §  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  83. 

||  Vol.  xvi.  p.  365,  pi.  Ixx.  %  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

**  Op.  cit.,  p.  158.  tt  Chantre,  "  Alb.,"  pi.  xri.  2. 


RAPIERS    WITH   NOTCHES    AT   THE    BASE. 


249 


Another,  rather  shorter  and  broader,  with  two  rivets  and  two  notches 
in  the  sides  of  the  base,  was  found  in  the  bay  of  Penhouet*  (Loire 
Inferieure). 

I  have  examples  from 
the  Seine  at  Paris,  and 
also  from  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Amiens. 

In  some  cases  the  rivet- 
holes  cut  through  the  mar- 
gin of  the  metal  as  in  Fig. 
304. 

Blades  appear  some- 
times to  have  been  cast 
with  deep  rounded  notches 
in  the  base  to  receive  the 
rivets  instead  of  having 
holes  drilled  or  cast  in 
them.  That  shown  in  Fig. 
314  is  of  this  character, 
and  was  found  in  the 
Thames  at  London.  It 
was  given  to  me  by  Mr. 
C.  Eoach  Smith,  F.S.A. 
Others  of  the  same  charac- 
ter have  also  been  found 
in  the  Thames.  One  of 
these  (16f  inches),  of 
nearly  the  same  type  but 
more  rounded  at  the  lower 
part  of  the  wings,  is  in  the 
British  Museum. 

Canon  Greenwell  has  a 
blade  of  this  type  (8f 
inches),  found  near  Meth- 
wold,  Norfolk. 

A  specimen  of  this  form 
(11  inches)  from  Edington 
Burtle,  Somerset,  is  in  the 
Museum  at  Taunton. 

A  blade  from  Inchigec- 
la,f  Co.  Cork,  figured  in 
the  Archteological  Journal, 
seems  to  be  notched  in  a 
similar  manner.  Another 
of  different  form,  but  ap- 
parently notched  after  the 
same  fashion,  is  engraved 
by  Vallancey.J 


Fig.  313.— Coveney. 


Some  of  the  rapier-shaped  blades,  and  especiaUy  those  of  larger  size 
such  as  seem  intermediate  between  swords  and  daggers,  are  ornamented 
*  Rev.  Arch.,  vol.  xxxiii.  p.  231.  f  Vol   x  p   73 

J  "  Collect.,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xi.  9. 


250     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.      [CHAP.  X. 

as  well  as  strengthened  by  a  projecting  midrib,  while  their  weight  is 
diminished  by  flirtings  along  either  side.  A  beautiful  example  of 
this  kind,  found  at  the  bottom  of  an  old  canoe,  between  the  peat  and 
clay,  near  Chatteris,  Cambs,  is  shown  one-quarter  size  in  Fig.  315. 
I  have  another  (14  inches)  with  the  midrib  not  quite  so  prominent,  and 
with  the  rivet-holes  cutting  the  margin  of  the  base,  found  at  Aston 
Ingham,  Herefordshire.  A  portion  of  another  was  found  near  Water- 
beach,*  Cambs. 

A  broader  blade  of  the  same  character  (12f  inches),  with  two  very  large 
rivets,  was  found  in  the  Thames  at  Kingston,  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  A  narrower  blade  (12  inches)  with  the  rivet-holes  cutting 
through  the  base,  was  found  at  Csesar's  Camp,  Farnham,  Surrey,  and  is 
in  the  same  collection. 

A  long  blade  of  this  character  from  the  Thames  (21  inches  long  and 
2|  inches  wide  at  the  base),  with  central  ridge  and  slight  flutings  at  the 
edges,  may  more  properly  be  regarded  as  a  sword.  It  is  in  the  British 
Museum. 

Six  blades,  all  of  the  rapier  character,  but  varying  in  details,  and  from 
12  inches  to  22  inches  in  length,  were  found  at  Talaton,  Devonshire.! 
Some  moulds  of  stone  for  blades  of  the  same  kind  were  found  at  Hennock 
in  the  same  county,  and  will  subsequently  be  described.  Another 
blade  (17  inches)  was  found  at  Winkleigh,];  near  Crediton,  Devon. 

A  blade  of  the  same  character  from  Ireland  is  given  by  Vallancey.§ 
A  fine  specimen  from  the  same  country  (18  inches)  is  in  the  British 
Museum.  ||  What  appears  to  be  a  part  of  a  blade  ^[  of  the  same  kind  has 
been  regarded  as  a  kind  of  "  steel"  for  sharpening  other  blades. 

A  rapier-shaped  blade  (21  inches)  with  two  rivet-holes  was  found,  with 
socketed  celts  and  a  palstave,  at  Mawgan,**  Cornwall. 

Blades  of  this  character  are  also  found  in  France.  Two  from  the 
departments  of  Aisne  and  Somme,tf  have  been  figured.  One  (20  inches 
long)  is  in  the  Museum  at  Nantes. 

A  rapier  blade  from  the  Chaussee  Brunehault,  and  now  in  the  Boulogne 
Museum,  is  almost  like  a  trefoil  in  outline  at  the  hilt  end. 

A  still  longer  blade  of  this  character,  which  perhaps  ought  with  greater 
propriety  to  have  been  classed  among  swords,  is  shown  in  Fig.  3 1 6  on 
the  scale  of  one-fourth.  It  has  unfortunately  lost  its  point,  but  is  still 
17f  inches  long.  It  would  appear  to  have  been  originally  about  20£ 
inches  long,  as  shown  in  the  figure.  The  blade  in  this  case  has  three 
projecting  ribs  between  which  and  again  towards  the  edges  it  is  fluted. 
It  was  found  in  the  Eiver  Ouse,  near  Thetford.  The  imperfect  rivet- 
holes  at  the  base  appear  to  have  been  cast  in  the  blade,  and  the  means 
of  steadying  it  in  its  hilt  must  have  been  but  inadequate.  Such  weapons, 
however,  can  only  have  been  intended  for  stabbing,  and  not  for  striking. 

Another  blade  of  similar  form,  but  with  perfect  rivet-holes,  was 
found  in  the  fine  earthwork  of  Badbury,  Dorsetshire,  and  is  in  the 
collection  of  Mr.  Durden,  of  Blandford.  It  is  23^-  inches  long  and  2-^- 
inches  wide  at  the  base  above  the  rivet-holes. 

Blades  of  this  kind  are  occasionally  found  in  Ireland.     In  the  British 


*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  193.      t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  110.      |  Op.  cit.,  p. 
§  "  Collect.,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xi.  10  ;  Gough's  "  Camden,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xviii.  10. 
||  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  vii.  23.  IT  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  186. 

**  Arch.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  337.  tt  -#»<*•  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 


113. 


LONG    RAPIER-SHAPED    BLADES. 


251 


Museum  is  one  (9  inches)  with  deep  notches  for  the  rivets,  found  in 
Kathkennan  Bog,  Co.  Tipperary. 

Nearly  all  the  rapier-shaped  blades  which  have  still  to  be  noticed  may 
be  regarded  as  probably  those  of  swords  rather  than  of  daggers.     That 


Fig.  315.— Chatteris.    J 


Fig.  316.— Thetford. 


Fig.  317.— Londonderry. 


shown  in  Fig.  317  is  in  my  own  collection,  and  was  found  near  London- 
derry. The  method  of  attachment  to  the  hilt  by  two  rivets  fitting  into 
notches  at  the  sides  of  the  base  of  the  blade  is  the  same  as  in  some  of  the 
shorter  weapons  already  mentioned. 

Another  (19  inches),  found  at  Killeshandra,*  Co.  Cavan,  has  similar 

*  Wilde,  "Catal.,"  p.  448,  fig.  326. 


252     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

notches  at  the  sides,  but  the  base  is  somewhat  differently  shaped.  Many 
of  these  rapier-shaped  blades  have  been  found  in  Ireland,  and 
Canon  Green  well  has  one  (27£  inches)  which  was  bought  in 
Scotland,  and  probably  found  in  that  country. 

A  blade  (14  inches)  found  in  the  Loire,  and  now  in  the  Nantes 
Museum,  has  side  notches  of  nearly  the  same  character  as  those 
in  Fig.  317. 

The  finest  example  of  the  rapier  kind  ever  found  in  Ireland 
is  that  shown  in  Fig.  318,  which  by  the  kindness  of  the  Eoyal 
Irish  Academy  I  here  reproduce  from  Sir  W.  Wilde's  Cata- 
logue. It  is  no  less  than  30^  inches  long,  and  is  only  f  inch 
in  width  at  the  centre  of  the  blade,  which  has  a  strong  midrib. 
It  was  found  in  a  bog  at  Lissane,  Co.  Derry.  I  have  a  blade, 
found  at  Noailles,  near  Beauvais,  Oise,  France,  identical  in 
form  and  character,  but  only  23^  inches  long.  Were  it  not 
that  the  rivets  are  wanting,  Fig.  318  might  have  been  taken 
from  the  French  instead  of  the  Irish  specimen. 

Another  narrow  blade,  with  a  heavy  rounded  midrib  (22 1 
inches  long  and  If  inch  broad  at  the  base),  was  found  in  a  bog 
at  Galbally,  Co.  Tyrone,  and  had  at  the  time  of  its  discovery 
the  original  hilt  attached.  There  also  appear  to  have  been 
some  remains  of  a  scabbard,  but  this  is  uncertain.  The  hilt 
has  been  engraved  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Royal  Historical  and 
Archteological  Society  of  Ireland,*  and  is  here  by  their  kindness 
reproduced  as  Fig.  319. 

Mr.  Wakeman,  of  Enniskillen,  in  his  interesting  ac- 
count of  the  discovery,  describes  the  material  of  which 
the  hilt  is  formed  as  bone,  or  rather  whalebone.  Both 
blade  and  haft  are,  however,  now  in  my  own  collection, 
and  I  think  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  material  of 
the  hilt  is  in  reality  a  dark-coloured  ox-horn.  On  some 
Danish  blades  I  have  seen  the  fibrous  texture  of  this 
substance  still  shown  by  the  oxide  or  salt  of  the  metal, 
forming  as  it  were  a  cast  of  its  surface,  which  has  out- 
lasted the  horn  against  which  it  was  originally  formed. 
There  are  no  traces  of  the  rivets  in  the  Galbally  hilt,  so 
that  probably  pins  of  hard  wood  served  to  secure  it  to 
the  blade. 

Some  Scandinavian  daggers  have  been  found  with 
their  handles  of  horn  still  attached.  One  from  a  barrow 
in  Hasslof,t  South  Halland,  Sweden,  had  its  leather 
sheath  with  a  long  rectangular  end  of  bronze  still  pre- 
served. The  length  of  the  sheath  is  about  twice  that 
of  the  blade  of  ^e  dagger. 

*  4th  Series,  vol.  ii.  p.  197. 

t  "Hallands  Fornminnes-Forenings  Aarskr.,"  1869,  p.  89. 


RAPIER   WITH    OX-HORN    HILT. 


253 


The  bronze  hilts  for  the  long  rapier-like  blades  are  rare,  but  not 
unknown. 

One  of  these  blades,    found  in  the   Co.  Tipperaiy,*  has  its  hilt  still 


Fig.  319.-Galbally. 

attached  by  metal  rivets,  as  shown  in  Fig.  320.     The  hilt  is  hollow  and  is 
*  Wilde,  "  Catal.,"  p.  458,  fig.  333,  from  which  the  fig.  in  the  text  is  copied  on  a 


e,       aa.,    p.  458,    g.  333,    rom  whi 
somewhat  larger  scale;  "  Horse  Ferales,"  pi.  vii. 


254    DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 


now  open  at  the  end,  though  probably,  as  Wilde  suggests,  originally  closed 
by  a  bone  stud. 

The  hilt  of  a  sword  in  the  museum  at  Tours  is  joined  to  the  blade  in 
much  the  same  fashion,  but  has  a  mere  indentation  instead  of  the  central 
semicircular  notch.  The  body  of  the  hilt  is  engraved  with  bands  of 
triangles  and  circles. 

A  rapier-shaped  blade,  with  a  bronze  hilt 
of  nearly  the  same  form,  but  with  six  rivets, 
is  in  the  museum  at  Narbonne.*  Another 
nearly  similar  was  found  at  Cheylounet,f 
Haute  Loire. 

Some  Egyptian  bronze  daggers  have  the 
hilts  formed  in  the  same  style. 

In  another  form,  the  blade  of  which  is 
more  leaf-shaped,  like  the  ordinary  bronze 
sword,  the  means  of  attachment  to  the  haft 
are  merely  slight  notches  at  the  sides.  That 
shown  in  Fig.  321  is  only  11  inches  long,  but 
the  edge  has  been  removed  for  about  1£  inch 
from  the  base,  showing  the  portion  which 
presumably  was  inserted  in  the  hilt.  The 
original  was  found  near  Ely,  and  is  in  the 
collection  of  Mr.  M.  Fisher,  of  that  town. 

I  have  a  small  specimen  of  the  same  kind 
(6J  inches)  from  Fordham,  Cambs. 

A  more  leaf -shaped  blade  (14  inches),  with 
rivet  notches  at  the  side  of  the  base,  was 
found,  with  leaf-shaped  spear-heads,  at 
Worth,^:  Washfield,  Devon.  Possibly  this, 
as  suggested  by  Mr.  Tucker,  F.S.A.,  was 
originally  a  sword  from  which  the  hilt  was 
broken. 

A  blade  more  like  Fig.  321  (15£  inches 
long  and  1  inch  broad)  was  found  in  the  Mardyke,  near  Grays  Thur- 
rock,§  Essex.  Some  of  the  weapons  of  this  kind,  like  one  from  the 
Thames  at  Kingston  (11^  inches),  appear  to  have  been  made  from  broken 
sword  or  rapier- like  blades. 

A  long-tanged  form,  of  which  it  is  sometimes  difficult  to  say  whether  it 
is  a  sword,  a  knife,  or  a  dagger,  is  of  not  unfrequent  occurrence  in 
Ireland.  That  shown  in  Fig.  322  is  in  my  own  collection. 

I  have  another  found  near  Armagh  (8^-  inches),  which  is  rather  broader 
in  its  proportions.  It  has  a  diagonal  row  of  circular  indentations  across 
each  side  of  the  blade  just  above  the  shoulders.  Not  improbably  these 
and  other  specimens  originally  existed  in  a  somewhat  different  form,  but 
having  been  injured  at  their  base  were  refitted  with  a  tang  for  attach- 
ment to  the  haft  instead  of  being  secured  by  rivets  at  the  sides  like  those 
last  mentioned. 

Some  Danish  daggers  are  provided  with  merely  a  slight  tang  like  that 
of  a  modern  chisel. 


Fig.  320. — Tifperary. 


*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  1.  f  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  x.  p.  370. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  120. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  191 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  406. 


BAYONET- LIKE    BLADES.  255 

Another  form  of  blade  is  more  of  the  nature  of  a  bayonet  than  of  a 


Fig.  321.—  Ely.        *  Fig.  322.—  North  of  Ireland, 


Fig.  323.-Raphoe.        i 


rapier,  yet  this  would  appear  to  be  the  proper  place  in  which  to  notice  it. 


256     DAGGERS  AND  THEIR  HILTS. — RAPIER-SHAPED  BLADES.     [CHAP.  X. 

The  example  shown  in  Fig.  323  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.K.S.,  and  was  found  at  Eaphoe,  Co.  Donegal. 

The  section  of  the  blade  is  nearly  square,  and  the  faces  are  ornamented 
with  parallel  engraved  lines.  It  ends  in  a  tang  with  a  single  hole 
through  it,  and  with  it  was  found  a  ferrule  of  bronze  for  receiving  the  end 
of  the  handle. 

In  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy  Museum  is  another  blade  of  the  same 
character,  33  inches  long  and  nearly  square  in  section,  but  having  the 
faces  fluted.  With  it  was  a  ferrule,  3f  inches  long,  having  four  ribs  at 
the  base,  with  hollows  between.  It  has  one  rivet-hole  through  it.  This 
specimen  was  found  in  a  bog  near  Glenarm,  Co.  Antrim. 

From  the  ferrules  and  general  form  of  the  blades  it  is  probable  that 
they  were  lance  or  pike  heads  rather  than  of  the  nature  of  swords  or 
daggers.  The  "  javelin  with  loop  "  found  in  Monaghan,  and  engraved 
in  the  Archaological  Journal  *  seems  to  be  somewhat  of  the  same  nature. 

It  may  possibly  be  the  case  that  some  of  the  other  blades 
described  in  this  chapter  have  served  as  the  points  of  spear-like 
weapons,  though,  from  the  hilts  being  discovered  with  so  many 
of  them,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  majority  must  be  regarded 
as  having  been  the  blades  of  daggers  or  rapiers.  Among  modern 
weapons  we  have,  however,  some  which,  like  the  sword-bayonet, 
are  intended  to  serve  a  double  purpose ;  and  though  there  can 
be  little  doubt  as  to  the  true  character  of  the  knife-daggers,  it  is 
hardly  safe  to  assert  that  all  the  dagger-like  blades  were  without 
exception  mounted  with  short  hilts  as  poniards,  and  that  none  were 
provided  with  straight  shafts  as  pikes,  or  placed  transversely  on 
a  handle  to  serve  as  halberds  or  battle-axes. 

The  weapons  described  in  this  chapter  probably  range  over  the 
whole  of  the  Bronze  Period  of  Britain.  The  knife-daggers,  which 
have  almost  exclusively  been  found  in  barrows,  often  associated 
with  other  weapons  formed  of  stone,  may  be  regarded  as  among 
the  earliest  of  our  bronze  antiquities ;  while  the  rapier-shaped 
blades,  though  of  rare  occurrence  in  hoards,  appear  to  belong  to  a 
period  when  socketed  celts  were  already  in  use.  Of  the  dagger-like 
blades,  in  whatever  manner  they  were  mounted,  a  considerable 
number  belong  to  an  early  period.  The  analogies  of  the  different 
forms  with  those  found  upon  the  Continent  have  already  from  time 
to  time  been  noted  in  the  preceding  pages. 

*  Vol.  iii.  p.  47. 


CHAPTER  XL 

TANGED    AND    SOCKETED     DAGGERS,     OR    SPEAR-HEADS,    HALBERDS, 
AND    MACES. 

BEFORE  passing  to  the  leaf-shaped  swords,  which  would  seera 
naturally  to  follow  in  order  after  the  blades  last  described,  it  will 
be  well  to  notice  two  sets  of  weapons  which,  though  in  many 
respects  identical  with  daggers,  may  in  the  one  case  have  served 
as  spear-heads,  and  in  the  other  most  probably  as  the  blades  of 
battle-axes  or  halberds.  To  the  first  of  these  two  classes  the  term 
"  Arreton  Down  type  "  has  been  conventionally  applied,  as  it  was 
in  the  hoard  found  at  that  place  that  the  largest  proportion  of  such 
weapons  occurred;  and,  indeed,  until  that  discovery  the  type  appears 
to  have  been  unknown. 

The  tanged  blades  are  still  rare,  but  have  now  been  found  in 
several  other  places  besides  the  Isle  of  Wight.  The  centre  of  the 
blade  is  usually  thick  and  strong,  showing  a  central  ridge  and 
having  the  sides  more  or  less  decorated  with  flutings  or  lines 
where  the  metal  is  reduced  in  thickness.  The  tang,  unlike  that 
of  the  daggers  described  at  the  beginning  of  the  last  chapter,  is 
long  and  narrow,  and  tapers  away  from  the  blade.  At  its  end  is  a 
hole  for  a  rivet  or  pin.  In  one  instance  a  ferrule  was  found  upon 
the  blade,  as  will  be  seen  in  Fig.  324.  This  figure  is  copied  from 
that  in  the  Archceologia*  which  is  taken  from  a  drawing  made  in 
1737  by  Sir  Charles  Frederick.  Upon  the  ferrule  are  a  number 
of  raised  bosses  in  imitation  of  rivets,  but  there  seems  to  be  no 
rivet-hole  in  the  ferrule  itself,  though  there  is  one  in  the  end  of 
the  tang  of  the  blade  with  the  rivet  still  in  it. 

Accounts  of  the  discovery  of  this  and  other  weapons  at  Arreton 
Down,  near  Newport,  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  were  communicated  to 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries  in  the  years  1735  and  1737,  and  the 
latter  has  been  printed  by  Mr.  A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S.f  At  least 

*  Vol.  xxxvi.  pi.  xxv.  2.  f  Arch.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  326. 


258 


TANGED    AND    SOCKETED   DAGGERS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XI. 


sixteen  articles  were  found  in  a  marl-pit,  and  they  are  said  to 
have  been  arranged  in  a  regular  order.  Of  these,  nine  were  of  this 
tanged  type,  but  varying  in  details.  One  (Fig.  328)  was  provided 

with  a  socket ;  two  were  dagger 
blades,  already  mentioned  (one  of 
which  is  given  in  Fig.  306),  and 
four  were  flanged  celts,  like  Fig.  8, 
but  varying  in  size.  Six  specimens 
from  this  hoard  are  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  Mr.  Franks,  in  the 
paper  already  mentioned,  regards 
these  tanged  weapons  as  spear- 
heads, and  is  I  think  right  in  so 
doing  ;  the  blades,  however,  present 
such  close  analogies  with  the  daggers 
from  the  Wiltshire  barrows,  and  the 
socketed  variety  (Fig.  328)  is  so 
dagger-like  in  character,  that  it  is 
hard  to  speak  with  any  degree  of 
confidence  upon  this  point. 

In  1855  Mr.  Franks  observed 
that  the  type  was  quite  new  to  him, 
but  since  that  time  several  other 
specimens  have  been  found  besides 
those  from  Arreton  Down.  One  of 
these,  discovered  in  the  River  Lea 
at  Stratford-le-Bow,  Essex,  is  now 
in  the  British  Museum,  and  is  shown 
in  Fig.  325.  As  will  be  seen,  it 
has  a  rounded  midrib,  with  several 
parallel  grooves  on  each  side  of  it 
engraved  or  punched  on  the  blade. 


Tig.  324.— Arreton 
Down.    J 


Fig.  325.— Stratford- 
le-Bow.    i 


Some  of  the  weapons  from*  Arreton 
Down  are  of  nearly  the  same  descrip- 
tion, but  the  midrib   is  more  ridged, 
and  is  ornamented  with  rows  of  engraved  or  punched  dots.     One  has 
a  double  crescent-shaped  line  of  dots  punched  in  at  the  base  of  the  blade. 
I  have  a  blade  (10  inches)  of  the  same  form  and  character,  but  without 
any  engraved  dots  upon  it,  from  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridge.     The  parallel 
flutings  on  the  blade  appear  to  have  been  produced  in  the  casting,  and 
not  by  engraving  or  punching.     The  hole  in  the  tang  was  also  made  in 
*  Arch.,  vol.  xxxvi.  pi.  xxv.  1 ;  "Horae  Ferales',"  pi.  vi.  24. 


THE    ARRETON   DOWN   TYPE, 


259 


the  casting,  being  irregular  in  form.  It  is  nowhere  less  than  £  inch 
in  diameter.  Another  weapon  (7£  inches)  of  the  same  character,  but 
apparently  without  any  fluting,  was  found  near  Newbury,*  Berks. 

Such  blades  are  of  extremely  rare  occurrence  in  Ireland,  but 
one  (9  inches)  closely  resembling  Fig.  325  was  found  in  the  county 
of  West  Meath,  and  is  now 
in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Robert 
Day,  F.S.A.:  of  Cork. 

A  slightly  different  variety  of 
blade  is  shown  in  Fig.  326.  It 
is  ridged  along  the  centre,  and 
has  a  groove  on  each  side  run- 
ning parallel  to  the  edge,  such 
as  would  afford  facility  for 
sharpening  the  edge  by  ham- 
mering it  out.  The  end  of  the 
tang  has  been  broken  off  at  the 
hole.  This  specimen  is  said  to 
have  been  found  near  Matlock, 
Derbyshire,  and  is  in  my  own 
collection. 

One  with  much  broader  and 
deeper  grooves  on  each  side  of 
the  midrib  (10  inches),  found 
in  Swaffham  Fen,  is  in  the 
Museum  of  the  Cambridge  An- 
tiquarian Society. 

A  nearly  similar  blade,  but 
with  four  slight  channels  on 
either  side  instead  of  one,  is  in 
the  museum  at  Copenhagen, 
and  is  said  to  have  been  found 
in  Italy,  f 

Another  of  these  blades,  but 
without  any  lateral  flutings, 
and  in  character  similar  to  Fig. 
324,  was  found  near  Preston,  J 
in  the  parish  of  Plymstock, 
Devon,  and  is  shown  in  Fig. 
327.  It  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  In  this  instance,  as 
at  Arreton  Down,  the  accom- 
panying articles  were  flanged  Kg.  326.— Matlock. 
celts  like  Fig.  9,  of  which  there 

were  sixteen,  and  three  dagger  blades  (see  Fig.  301).  There  was  also  a 
narrow  chisel  (Fig.  190). 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  322,  pi.  26,  No.  1. 
t  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Copenhagen  vol.,  p.  483. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  349.     For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  Mr. 
A.  W.  Franks,  F.R.S. 

S   2 


260 


TANGED    AND    SOCKETED   DAGGERS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XT. 


Two  specimens  from  Suffolk  (8  inches  and  10^  inches),  one  of  them 
from  Hintlesham,*  formed  part  of  the  collection  of  the  late  Mr.  Whin- 
copp,  and  are  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

One  of  the  Arreton  Down  f  specimens,  without  a  ferrule,  is  also  much  of 
this  type. 

In  the  Arreton  Down  hoard  there  was  a  single  example  of  a 
weapon  of  this  kind  which  was  provided  with 
a  socket  for  the  insertion  of  a  handle  or  shaft, 
instead  of  having  a  tang.  Fig.  328  is  copied 
from  the  engraving  published  in  the  Archceo- 
logia.+  As  will  be  observed,  the  socket  part  is 
made  to  abut  on  the  blade,  much  after  the  man- 
ner of  a  dagger  handle,  and  has  cast  upon  it 
two  bosses  in  imitation  of  the  heads  of  rivets 
for  securing  the  blade.  A  weapon  (8j  inches), 
which  there  can  hardly  be  a  doubt  is  the  original 
from  which  Sir  Charles  Frederick  made  his  draw- 
ing for  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  is  now  in 
Canon  Greenwell's  collection,  and  I  know  of  no 
other  example.  It  differs  from  the  socketed 
knives  in  the  character  of  the  blade,  which  is 
thicker  and  more  highly  ornamented,  like  some 
of  the  daggers  from  the  Wiltshire  barrows.  Whe- 
ther it  was  itself  intended  to  be  a  dagger,  or 
whether  it  was  the  head  of  a  spear  or  lance,  I 
will  not  attempt  to  determine. 

What  has  somewhat  the  appearance  of  being  a 
weapon  of  the  same  character  was  found  in  a  moss 
near  Campbeltown,§  Argyleshire,  together  with  a 
bronze  sword.  It  may,  however,  as  already  suggested, 
be  merely  a  socketed  knife. 

A  very  beautiful  weapon  of  this  kind  is  in  the  mu- 
seum at  Lausanne.  The  blade  is  ornamented  some- 
what in  the  same  manner  as  that  of  Fig.  328.  The 
socket  is  shorter  and  ornamented  with  parallel  rings 
and  bands  of  triangles,  alternately  hatched  and  plain. 
There  appear  to  be  six  rivets,  and  what  may  be 
termed  the  hilt  has  a  deep  half-oval  notch  in  it,  like  that  which  is  com- 
mon on  swords  and  daggers.  The  margin  of  this  notch  is  decorated  with 
punctured  dots.  It  was,  I  believe,  found  near  Sion,  Valais,  with  por- 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  349. 

t  Arch.,  xxxvi.  pi.  xxv.  3 ;  "Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  vi.  25. 

j  Vol.  xxxvi.  p.  328,  pi.  xxv.  3. 

§  Wilson's  «  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  390 ;  Catal.  Mus.  Arch.  Inst.,  Edinb.,  p.  23. 


Fig.  328.— Arreton 
Down,    i 


SCANDINAVIAN    AND    GERMAN    HALBERDS. 


261 


tions  of  what  may  have  been  the  ornaments  of  a  sheath,  and  also  with 
a  long  narrow  celt,  flanged  at  the  upper  part.  The  general  resemblance 
between  the  Swiss  and  the  English  specimens  is  very  remarkable. 

An  Egyptian  *  blade,  with  the  side  edges  slightly  curved  inwards,  and 
with  the  socket  rather  shorter  than  in  Fig.  328,  is  in  the  museum  at 
Boulaq.  It  is  attached  to  the  socket  by  three  rivets. 


Fig.  329.— Arup. 

The  second  series  of  blades  of  which  it  is  proposed  to  treat  in 
this  chapter  are  usually  from  six  to  sixteen  inches  long,  rather 
broad  at  the  base,  and  not  unfrequently  curved  longitudinally.  This 

*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  xix.  11. 


262  TANGED    AND   SOCKETED   DAGGERS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XI. 

latter  circumstance,  as  well  as  their  shape  and  weight,  proves  that 
some  of  these  broad  blades  were  not  intended  for  use  as  daggers  ; 
and  this  being  admitted,  it  seems  to  follow  that  others,  which 
resemble  the  curved  blades  in  all  respects  except  their  curvature, 
must  be  regarded  as  belonging  to  the  same  class  of  weapons. 
What  these  weapons  were  may  I  think  be  best  shown  by  some 
examples  from  Scandinavia  and  Northern  Germany,  which  also 
show  the  manner  in  which  similar  blades  were  attached  to  their 
shafts  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  halberd  or  battle-axe. 

That  which  I  have  selected  by  way  of  illustration  is  one  that  is  engraved 
in  Dr.  Oscar  Montelius'  "  Sveriges  Forntid,"  *  who  has  kindly  lent  me  the 
block  of  Fig.  329.  In  this  instance  the  scale  adopted  is  one-third  linear 
measure.  In  A  is  given  a  view  of  the  upper  end,  seen  from  above,  and 
in  B  a  view  from  behind  the  blade,  showing  the  great  projection  of  the 


Fig.  330.— China.          J 

rivet-like  knobs.  The0handle  as  well  as  the  blade  is  in  bronze.  This 
specimen  was  found  at  Arup,  in  Scania.  Another  is  engraved  in  Lisch's 
"  Frederico-Francisceum."  f  It  was  found,  with  two  others,  at  Blen- 
gow,  near  Buckow,  Mecklenburg  Schwerin,  and  is  regarded  by  Lisch  as 
a  kind  of  battle-axe,  or  possibly  as  a  "commander's  staff"  or  baton  of 
honour.  Good  examples  of  the  same  kind  are  in  the  museums  at  Malmoe 
and  Kiel,  and  others  have  been  described  by  Klemm.J  Two  have  been 
found  near  Neu  Euppin.  Others  are  in  the  Schwerin  Museum. 
Another,  with  a  separate  socket,  having  three  rivet-like  bosses  upon  it, 
is  in  the  Berlin  Museum.  §  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  this  last-men- 
tioned weapon  is  a  representative  of  an  earlier  form,  when  the  shaft  was 
merely  of  wood  and  the  transverse  blade  was  secured  in  it  by  means  of 

*  Fig.  131.  f  Taf.  vii.  1 ;  xxxiii.  1  ;  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  x.  2, 

I  "  Handb.  der  Germ.  Alterth.,"  p.  208.    See  also  Preusker,  "  Blicke,"  Taf.  iii.  44  f. ; 
Klomm,  "  Allg.  Culturwiss,"  p.  112. 

§  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "Die  Bronze  Schwerter  des  K.  Mus.,"  Taf.  vi.  6. 


IRISH    HALBERDS.  263 

three  rivets.  An  intermediate  form,  in  which  the  blade  fits  into  a  kind  of 
open-work  bronze  socket  for  receiving  a  shaft,  is  preserved  in  the  Berlin 
Museum.* 

An  instance  of  the  use  of  an  analogous  form  of  weapon  in  another  part 
of  the  world  is  aiforded  by  some  bronze  blades  from  China,  of  which  one 
is  represented  in  Fig.  330.  For  the  loan  of  the  original  of  this  figure 
I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  A.  W.  Franks,  F.E.S.  As  will  be  readily  seen, 
the  blade  is  adapted  for  being  attached  at  nearly  a  right  angle  to  a 
shaft,  into  which  the  flat  tang  behind  the  stop-ridge  would  be  inserted, 
and  the  blade  would  then  be  secured  in  its  position  by  laces  or  straps 
passing  through  the  slots  at  the  base  of  the  blade.  The  antiquity  of 
such  weapons  in  China  it  is  hard  to  ascertain,  but  they  probably  date  back 
to  a  period  many  centuries  remote  from  the  present  day. 

Several  of  them  are  engraved  in  a  Chinese  work  on  antiquities,  "The 
Golden  Study,"  to  which  Mr.  H.  N.  Moseley,  F.E.S.,  has  kindly  called 
my  attention.  What  appear  to  be  bronze  spear-heads  and  swords  are 
figured  in  the  same  work. 

A  bronze  weapon  of  the  same  kind,  but  with  a  socket,  which,  like 
the  blade,  is  highly  ornamented,  was  found  on  the  Yenissei,f  in  Siberia. 
There  is  the  figure  of  a  kind  of  antelope  projecting  from  the  socket  oppo- 
site the  blade.  Another,  from  Viatka,  in  Russia,  has  the  head  of  an 
animal  in  the  same  position. 

An  iron  weapon  with  a  socket  at  right  angles  to  the  blade,  from  the 
Iiiwa,|  Perm,  appears  to  be  a  halberd  of  much  the  same  kind. 

This  form  of  weapon  closely  approximates  to  the  Australian  "malga"  § 
and  to  some  other  wooden  weapons  in  use  in  New  Caledonia. 

As  it  is  in  Ireland  and  Scotland  that  the  most  characteristic  of 
the  halberd  blades  have  been  discovered,  it  will  be  well  to  com- 
mence with  the  examples  from  those  countries  rather  than  with 
those  from  England. 

In  Fig.  331  is  represented  a  fine  specimen  of  a  form  not  unusual  in 
Ireland,  though  the  central  rib  is  somewhat  more  ornamented  than  is 
generally  the  case.  The  rivets,  as  usual,  are  three  in  number,  and  are 
still  preserved  in  the  blade.  In  this  case  they  are  about  f  inch  in 
diameter  and  £  inch  between  the  heads,  which  are  about  |  inch  in 
diameter  and  have  been  carefully  hammered  into  an  almost  hemispherical 
form.  The  midrib  ends  abruptly  in  a  straight  line  where  it  abutted  on 
the  shaft.  The  metal  appears  to  have  a  considerably  less  proportion  of 
tin  to  copper  than  is  usual  with  bronze  weapons.  It  looks  in  fact  almost 
like  pure  copper. 

This  coppery  appearance  is  by  no  means  uncommon  in  these  blades.  I 
have  another  specimen  of  the  same  form  (9f-  inches),  but  without  the  bead 
on  the  midrib.  It  was  found  at  Letterkenny,  Co.  Donegal.  A  specimen 
much  like  Fig.  331  is  termed  by  Vallancey,||  "the  brass  head  of  a  Tuagh 

*  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  x.  3 ;  Von  Ledebur,  "  Koiiigl.  Mus.,"  p.  15. 
t  "  Materiaux,"  vol.   viii.  pi.  xvi.  14 ;  vol.   xiii.  p.   232 ;  Chantre,  "  Age.  du  Br., 
2me  partie,  p.  283  ;  Mem.  des  Ant.  du  Nord,  1872—7,  p.  116. 
I  "Zeitsch.  fur  Ethnol.,"  vol.  ix.  1877,  Proc.,  p.  34,  Taf.  vi.  3. 
§  Col.  A.  Lane  Fox,  "  Prim.  Warfare,"  lect.  2. 
||   "  Coll.  Hib.,"  vol.  iv.  p.  62,  pi.  xi.  11. 


264 


TANGED    AND    SOCKETED   DAGGERS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XI. 


Fig.  331.-Ireland. 


catha,  a  general  name  for  the  war- 
axe."  "The  large  rivets  of  this 
weapon  show  it  was  mounted  on  a 
very  strong  shaft." 

Sir  W.  Wilde  has  described, 
under  the  two  distinct  headings 
of  "Broad  scythe-shaped  Swords,'' 
and  "  Battle-axes,"  the  weapons 
which  I  have  here  classed  toge- 
ther. Of  the  former  he  mentions 
forty-one  specimens  in  the  Mu- 
seum of  the  Royal  Irish  Aca- 
demy, of  the  latter  but  two  or 
three.  The  "  swords  "  *  he  de- 
scribes as  thick,  heavy,  and  round- 
pointed,  averaging  about  12 
inches  in  length  by  about  2  \ 
inches  in  breadth  at  the  base  ; 
twenty-two  of  the  blades  being 
curved.  With  the  strong  blades, 
however,  he  classes  some  which 
are  quite  thin  and  flat,  and  which 
have  more  the  appearance  of 
having  been  intended  for  daggers. 
The  curved  shape  is  much  against 
their  having  been  attached  to 
staves  "  spear- ways  ;"  so  that 
Wilde's  other  suggestion  of  the 
scythe-shaped  swords  having  been 
mounted  like  axes,  or  "  affixed  to 
long  handles  like  modern  hal- 
berds," seems  much  more  rea- 
sonable. As  to  the  shorter  and 
broader  blades,  whether  curved 
or  not,  he  appears  to  have  had 
no  doubt  of  their  being  a  kind  of 
battle-axes. 

Wilde  has  inferred  from  the 
large  size  of  the  rivets,  some 
being  1^  inches  in  length  and 

Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  449. 


COPPER    BLADES    LESS    BRITTLE   THAN    BRONZE.  265 

nearly  1  inch  across  the  burr  or  head,  that  they  must  have  been 
attached  to  massive  metal  handles,  of  which,  however,  no  frag- 
ments have  been  preserved.  If  this  view  had  been  correct,  the 
disappearance  of  the  handles  would  be  a  remarkable  circumstance  ; 
but  the  large  rivets  appear  rather  intended  for  securing  the  blades 
to  wooden  shafts,  the  disappearance  of  which  from  ordinary  decay 
is  exactly  what  might  be  expected.  In  one  instance  there  are 
large  conical  washers  or  broad  rings  of  bronze  1  j  inches  in  diameter 
beneath  the  rivet-heads,  and  these  in  the  case  of  a  metal  handle 
would  have  been  superfluous. 

Wilde  appears  to  me  to  have  fallen  into  another  error  with 
respect  to  the  antiquity  of  this  form  of  weapon.*  Arguing  from 
the  fact  that  many  of  the  specimens  are  formed  either  of  red  bronze 
or  of  pure  copper,  he  thinks  it  probable  that,  like  the  celts  of 
that  material,  they  are  of  immense  antiquity.  And  in  another 
place  he  says  that  their  antiquity  may  be  gathered  from  the  fact 
of  many  being  of  copper,  the  use  of  which  metal  invariably  pre- 
ceded that  of  bronze.  As  I  have  already  had  occasion  to  observe, 
it  is  perfectly  true  that  many  of  these  blades  have  the  appearance 
of  being  made  of  copper,  but  the  absence  of  tin  in  their  composi- 
tion has  not  as  yet  been  proved.  Even  were  they  of  pure  copper  the 
form  and  character  of  the  blades  show  them  to  be  derivatives  from 
the  dagger,  as  the  dagger  itself  sprang  from  the  simpler  knife ;  and 
the  cause  for  using  a  less  proportion  of  tin,  or  indeed  none  of  that 
metal  in  them,  appears  to  me  to  have  been  the  wish  to  make  them 
less  brittle  than  if  they  had  been  of  bronze.  A  weapon  used  as  a 
battle-axe  would  not  be  less  deadly  from  having  a  somewhat  duller 
cutting  edge  than  if  formed  of  bronze,  and  should  it  get  bent  in 
an  encounter,  the  straightening  of  it  might  quickly  be  effected, 
while  the  loss  of  a  blade  by  its  breaking  would  be  irreparable. 
I  have  elsewhere  contended  that  the  Hungarian  perforated  double- 
ended  axes  (like  pickaxes)  of  copper,  with  but  little  or  no  tin  in 
them,  were  made  of  this  material,  not  because  tin  was  unknown,  but 
because  the  ductile  and  malleable  copper  was  found  better  adapted 
for  certain  purposes  than  the  more  fragile  bronze.  In  the  same 
manner  copper  rather  than  brass  sets  or  punches  are  in  use  among 
engineers  at  the  present  day,  when  an  intermediate  piece  of  metal 
is  required  to  convey  the  blows  of  a  hammer  to  an  iron  key  or 
other  object  which  would  be  injured  by  receiving  the  blows  direct. 

Sir  William  Wilde,  in  his  Fig.  360,  has  shown  a  hollow  tube  of 
*  P.  449. 


266  TANGED   AND   SOCKETED    DAGGERS,   ETC.  [CHAP.  XI. 

bronze  as  forming  the  handle  of  a  wide  halberd  blade  ;  but  this 
juxtaposition  of  the  two  objects  has  been  questioned.  Not  only 
are  the  projecting  spikes  upon  the  tube  somewhat  inconsistent 
with  its  use  as  a  handle,  but  from  a  comparison  with  some  similar 
objects  since  discovered  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  presumed 
halberd  shaft  being  in  reality  a  portion  of  a  trumpet. 


iSiii 


Fig.  332.-Cavan.        i 

The  blade  which  is  figured  in  connection  with,  this  handle  was  found 
near  Eoscrea,  Co.  Tipperary,  and  closely  resembles  Fig.  332  both  in  form 
and  size,  being  7f  inches  long  and  8&  inches  wide  at  the  base,  in  which 
are  two  rivet-holes  and  also  two  notches  in  the  margin.  It  has  a  kind  of 
treble  midrib.  The  blade  shown  in  Fig.  332  has  but  a  single  midrib,  but 
near  the  edges  and  following  the  same  curve  is  a  minor  ridge.  A  section 
is  given  at  the  side  of  the  figure.  The  original  was  found  near  Cavan, 
and  is  in  my  own  collection.  From  the  absence  of  rivet-holes  it  seems 
doubtful  whether  it  was  ever  mounted  on  a  shaft  so  as  to  form  a  complete 
weapon,  unless,  indeed,  the  sharp  base  was  merely  driven  into  the  wood. 
The  metal  appears  to  have  a  larger  admixture  of  tin  in  it  than  is  usual 
in  the  scythe-like  blades.  I  am  not  aware  of  the  existence  of  any  other 
specimens  of  this  very  broad  form  besides  the  two  now  mentioned. 

A  curved  blade,  of  much  the  same  section  as  Fig.  332,  but  15£  inches 
long  and  3£  inches  broad  at  the  base,  found  at  the  foot  of  Slieve  Kileta 
Hill,  Co.  Wexford,  is  in  the  British  Museum.  It  has  three  stout  rivets. 


IRISH    HALBERDS.  267 

The  long  and  narrow  blade  shown  in  Fig.  333  seems  also  to  belong 


Fig.  333.— Newtowu  Limavady. 


Fi(j.  334.— Ballygawley. 


268 


TAXGED    AND   SOCKETED   DAGGERS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XI. 


to  the  category  of  halberds,  though  the  rivet-holes  are  smaller  than  usual, 
and  the  blade  itself  thinner.  It  is  strengthened  by  a  number  of  small 
converging  ribs  formed  in  the  casting,  instead  of  by  a  broad  midrib,  and 
is  also  straight  and  not  curved.  The  original  was  found  near  Newtown 
Limavady,  Co.  Derry,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S. 
The  shorter  and  much  more  massive  blade  shown  in  Fig.  334  is  also  in 
Canon  Greenwell' s  collection,  and  was  found  at  Ballygawley,  Co.  Tyrone. 
It  has  probably  seen  much  service,  as  what  appear  to  have  been  the 


Tig.  335.— Falkland. 


Fig.  336.— Strarnr.er. 


original  three  rivet-holes  have  in  two  cases  been  partly  closed  by  hammer- 
ing, while  in  the  third  the  base  of  the  blade  has  broken  away.  In  order 
to  make  use  of  the  weapon,  three  fresh  holes  have  been  drilled  rather 
farther  from  the  base,  in  which  the  rivets  are  still  preserved. 

Some  of  the  Irish  *  blades  are  more  rounded  than  this  at  the  point,  and 
have  been  secured  to  the  shafts  by  four  rivets  arranged  as  in  Fig.  336. 
There  is  also  occasionally  a  shoulder  between  the  blade  and  the  part  let 
into  the  handle,  as  in  that  from  Stranraer. 

*  Conf .  Wilde,  op.  cit.,  p.  489,  figs.  356  and  357 ;  and  "  Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  x.  6. 


SCOTTISH    ANI)    ENGLISH    HALBERDS.  269 

In  Fig.  335  is  shown  another  blade  much  like  that  from  Ballygawley, 


JlilHi 


Fig.  338. — Shropshire.        i 


Fig.  337.— Harbyrnrigge.        J 

but  found  near  Falkland,  Fifeshire.     The  metal   appears  to  be  nearly 


270  TANGED    AND    SOCKETED    DAGGERS,    ETC.  [ciIAP.  XI. 

Eure  copper,  and  it  is  doubtful  whether  it  ever  had  more  than  one  rivet- 
ole,  though  there  are  notches  for  the  reception  of  two  besides  the  rivet 
still  left  in  the  blade.  It  would,  however,  be  fairly  secured  in  its  handle 
by  a  second  rivet  in  the  notch  on  the  left,  while  a  third  at  the  back  of 
the  midrib  would  prevent  the  blade  from  being  driven  into  its  handle  by 
a  blow. 

In  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh  are  several  of  these  halberd- 
like  blades,  some  of  them  curved.  One  from  Sluie,*  Edinkillie,  Elgin- 
shire, is  1 1  by  3£  inches,  and  has  four  rivet-holes  arranged  in  a  semi- 
circle. It  was  found  with  two  flat  celts.  Three  others,  from  10  to  13£ 
inches  by. 3  inches,  were  found  together  at  Kingarth,f  Bute.  They  are 
described  as  of  reddish  bronze. 

The  original  of  Fig.  336  was  found  near  Stranraer,^:  Wigtonshire,  and 
is  now  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh.  It  is  12£  inches  long 
and  4£  broad,  and  weighs  nearly  If  Ibs.,  so  that  if  mounted  as  a  halberd, 
it  must  have  been  a  formidable  weapon.  The  rivets  are  an  inch  in 
length. 

In  England  and  Wales  the  blades  which  can  with  any  degree  of 
confidence  be  regarded  as  those  of  halberds  are  by  no  means 
common.  I  think,  however,  that  the  example  from  Harbyrnrigge,§ 
Crosby  Ravensworth,  Westmoreland,  shown  in  Fig.  337,  must  be 
looked  upon  as  a  halberd  rather  than  as  a  dagger.  It  is  in  the 
collection  of  Canon  Green  well,  F.R.S. 

Another  blade  of  much  the  same  character  is  shown  on  the  scale  of  one- 
fourth  in  Fig.  338.  It  was  found  in  Shropshire,  ||  but  the  exact  locality 
is  not  known.  Another  (11£  by  4  inches),  bearing  much  resemblance  to 
that  from  Shropshire,  was  found  near  Manea,^[  Cambridgeshire.  It  is 
provided  with  four  rivets,  and  has  a  small  rib  running  down  the  thickened 
centre  of  the  blade.  It  is  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge  Anti- 
quarian Society. 

The  late  Mr.  J.  W.  Flower,  F.Gr.S.,  bequeathed  to  me  a  blade  of  this 
character  (9f  by  3£  inches)  thickened  out  in  the  middle  like  Fig.  334,  and 
with  three  large  rivet-holes  in  the  base,  which  is  somewhat  of  a  trefoil 
form.  It  was  found  with  broken  sword-blades  and  spear-heads  at  Stoke 
Ferry,  Norfolk,  and  appears  to  be  formed  of  copper. 

The  only  Welsh  example  which  I  have  to  mention  was  found  in  the 
parish  of  Llansanffraid,**  Cwm  Deuddwr,  Radnorshire.  It  is  9  inches 
long  and  4  inches  wide,  and  weighs  1 5  oz.  In  form  and  character  it  closely 
resembles  the  Irish  and  Scotch  specimens  (Figs.  334  and  335),  having 
a  plain  midrib,  bevelled  edges,  and  three  rivet-holes. 

A  large  blade,  with  a  strong  midrib  and  three  rivets,  found  in 
Zealand,  and  engraved  by  Madsen,ff  may  have  belonged  to  a  halberd  of 
this  class. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  p.  187.  +  Ibid.,  vol.  iv.  p.  396. 

%  Ibid.,  vol.  vii.  p.  423.     I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  use  of  this  cut. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  258. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  414 ;  vol.  xviii.  p.  161 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  403. 

H  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  193;  "Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  x.  7. 

**  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  20  (figured). 

+t  "Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xi.  14. 


MACES,    PROBABLY   MEDIAEVAL. 


271 


I  have  already  mentioned  the  halberd  blades  from  Scandinavia 
and  North  Germany,  and  have  seen  but  one  example  from  any  of 
the  western  countries  of  Europe.  This  is  from  Spain,  and  was 
found  near  Ciudad  Real.  It  is  about  8j  inches  long,  and  more 
T-shaped  at  the  base  than  any  British  specimen,  the  blade 
suddenly  expanding  from  2  inches  in  width  to  5.  In  this 
expanded  part  are  the  usual  three  rivets,  each  about  1  inch  in 
length.  The  discovery  of  a  weapon  of  this  type  in  Spain  seems 
to  lend  support  to  those  who  maintain  that  there  was  some  con- 
nection between  the  Iberians  and  the  early  inhabitants  of  Ireland. 
The  curious  similarity  of  some  of  the  Portuguese  forms  of  flint 
arrow-  and  javelin-heads  to  those  of  Ireland  is  also  worthy  of  notice. 


Fig.  3b9.— Lidg 


Besides  the  battle-axe  or  halberd  there  is  another  form  of 
weapon  for  hand-to-hand  encounters — the  mace — of  which  it 
will  be  well  to  say  a  few  words  ;  for  though  I  do  not  for  a  moment 
believe  that  the  bronze  mace-heads  so  frequently  found  in  this 
and  other  European  countries  belong  to  the  Bronze  Age,  yet  by 
many  they  have  been  classed  among  the  antiquities  of  that  period. 
These  weapons  vary  considerably  in  size  and  weight,  but  the  cuts 
will  show  the  more  common  forms. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  339  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge  Antiquarian 
Society,  and  is  stated  to  have  been  found  at  Lidgate,*  Suffolk.  In  the 
Meyrick  f  Collection  is  one  precisely  similar,  which  was  brought  from 
Italy.  The  mace  to  which  these  dentated  rings  were  attached  is  thought 
to  have  been  a  kind  of  "  morning  star  "  or  flail.  Others  from  Lanark- 


*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  181. 


f  Skelton's  Meyrick,  vol.  i.  pi.  xlv. 


272  TANGED    AND    SOCKETED    DAGGERS,    ETC-  [CHAP.  XT. 

shire  *  are  of  similar  character.  Professor  Daniel  Wilson  refers  these  to 
the  time  of  the  Roman  occupation. 

I  have  three  heavy  rings  with  four  long  and  eight  short  spikes  each, 
from  Hungary. 

Another  form  is  provided  with  a  socket,  and  is  evidently  intended  for 
mounting  on  a  straight  staff.  That  shown  in  Fig.  340  was  found  in  a 
well  at  Great  Bedwin,f  Wilts,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
Another  of  the  same  class,  with  a  longer  socket,  is  in  the  Museum  |  of 
the  Cambridge  Antiquarian  Society ;  and  two  are  in  the  collection  of 
Mr.  M.  Fisher,  at  Ely.  Others  have  been  found  in  London,  §  and  at 
Stroud,  ||  Gloucestershire. 

An  Irish  example  from  Wilde  ^f  is  shown  in  Fig.  341.  There  are  three 
such  in  the  Museum  of  the  Academy,  varying  in  length  from  2  to  5  inches. 
One  from  Tipperary  **  (4  inches)  is  of  the  same  kind. 

I  have  specimens  of  this  kind  from  Hungary,  one  (4|-  inches)  with 
three  rows  of  four  spikes,  and  one  (4-f-  inches)  with  five  rows  of  five 
spikes.  I  have  another  from  the  Seine  at  Paris  (4f  inches)  with  six 
longitudinal  ribs  instead  of  spikes. 

Lindenschmit  f f  has  figured  seven  examples,  from  various  parts  of 
Germany  and  Italy,  some  more  or  less  similar  to  each  of  "the  three  figures 
I  have  given.  Some  of  these  are  decorated  with  spirals  in  relief.  Lisch  J  J 
has  also  engraved  some  specimens. 

In  the  British  Museum  §§  are  some  foreign  specimens  decorated  with 
patterns  of  a  decidedly  mediaeval  character. 

An  instrument  of  this  kind,  with  eight  lateral  spikes  and  a  long  iron 
spike  coming  out  from  the  end,  was  found  with  numerous  mediaeval  relics 
in  the  ruins  of  S6borg,||||  in  North  Zealand.  Such  a  discovery  seems  to  me 
conclusive  as  to  the  date  to  be  assigned  to  this  class  of  weapons. 

I  must  apologise  to  the  reader  for  this  digression,  and  now 
proceed  to  the  consideration  of  the  leaf-shaped  bronze  swords, 
which  are  far  more  closely  allied  to  the  arms  described  in 
Chapter  X.  than  to  the  objects  which  have  been  discussed  in  the 
present  chapter. 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  111.  t  Arch,  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  411. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  302. 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  249,  vol.  iii.  p.  60. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

If  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  493,  fig.  361.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  this  cut. 

**  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  8.,  vol.  v.  p.  12. 

ft  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorzeit,"  vol.  i   Heft  viii.  Taf.  2. 

JJ  "Freder.  Francisc.,"  Taf.  xxv.  13,  14.  §§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  ubi  sup. 

UK  Annalen  for  Nord.  Oldkynd.,  1851,  Taf.  v.  1. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS. 

AMONG  ancient  weapons  of  bronze,  perhaps  the  most  remarkable 
both  for  elegance  of  form  and  for  the  skill  displayed  in  their  cast- 
ing are  the  leaf-shaped  swords,  of  which  a  considerable  number 
have  come  down  to  our  times.  The  only  other  forms  that  can  vie 
with  them  in  these  respects  are  the  spear-heads,  of  which  many 
are  gracefully  proportioned,  while  the  coring  of  their  sockets  for 
the  reception  of  the  shafts  would  do  credit  to  the  most  skilful 
modern  founder.  Neither  the  one  nor  the  other  belong  to  the 
earliest  period  *  when  bronze  first  came  into  general  use  for  weapons 
and  tools,  the  fiat  celts  and  knife-daggers  characteristic  of  that 
period  being  as  a  rule  absent  from  the  hoards  in  which  fragments 
of  swords  and  spear-heads  are  present. 

There  is  also  this  remarkable  circumstance  attaching  to  the 
bronze  swords,  viz.,  that  there  is  no  well-authenticated  instance t 
of  their  occurrence  with  any  interments  in  barrows.  It  is  true 
that  Professor  Daniel  Wilson  +  speaks  of  the  frequent  discovery  of 
broken  swords  with  sepulchral  deposits,  and  mentions  one  found 
alongside  of  a  cinerary  urn  in  a  tumulus  at  Memsie,  Aberdeenshire, 
and  another  which  lay  beside  a  human  skeleton  in  a  cist  under 
Carlochan  Cairn,  Carmichael,  Galloway.  But  one  of  these  dis- 
coveries took  place  so  long  ago  as  1776,  and  in  both  cases  there  may, 
as  Canon  Greenwell  has  suggested,  either  have  been  some  mistake 
as  to  the  manner  of  finding,  or  the  connection  of  the  sword  with  the 
interment  may  have  been  apparent  rather  than  real.  A  portion  of  a 
sword  6i  inches  long,  said  to  have  been  found  in  a  cairn  at  Ballagan,§ 
Strathblane,  Stirlingshire,  in  1788,  is  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum 
at  Edinburgh.  A  "  sarcophagus  with  ashes  "  is  said  to  have  been 
in  the  cairn.  Another  sword,  broken  in  four  pieces,  is  said  to 

*  Conf.  Greenwell,  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  49.         t  Op.  cit.,  p.  44. 

J  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  394.  §  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  App.  p.  67. 


274  LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS.  [CHAP.  XII. 

have  been  found  in  a  barrow  in  Breconshire.*  Another,  found  at 
Wetheringsett,  Suffolk,  is  said  to  have  lain  fourteen  feet  deep  in  clay, 
with  a  great  number  of  human  bones,  but  no  pottery  or  other 
remains.  In  this  case,  however,  there  is  no  mention  of  a  barrow. 
The  sword  is  elsewhere  said  to  have  been  found  in  a  sandpit,  t 

In  Scandinavia,  however,  bronze  swords  have  not  unfrequently 
been  found  with  interments  in  barrows ;  and  inasmuch  as  the 
owners  of  the  bronze  swords  in  Britain  were,  after  death,  in  all 
probability  interred,  either  in  a  burnt  or  unburnt  condition,  there 
appears  no  reason  why  in  some  instances  their  swords  may  not 
have  been  buried  with  them,  though  as  yet  the  evidence  of  these 
weapons  having  been  found  in  tumuli,  is  far  from  satisfactory. 
Possibly  at  the  time  when  the  swords  were  in  use  the  practice  of 
erecting  mounds  over  graves  had  ceased,  and  there  are  now  no 
external  marks  upon  the  ground  to  indicate  the  graves  of  the 
warriors  who  wielded  the  bronze  swords,  and  who  have  thus 
escaped  disturbance  in  their  "  narrow  cells "  from  the  hands  of 
treasure-seekers  and  archaeologists ;  or  possibly  the  custom  of 
burying  weapons  with  the  dead  may  at  that  time  have  ceased. 

But  not  only  has  there  been  a  question,  as  to  what  was  the  method 
of  interment  in  vogue  among  the  owners  of  the  bronze  swords, 
but,  as  already  mentioned  in  the  Introductory  Chapter,  serious 
dispute  has  arisen  whether  the  swords  themselves  are  not  Roman, 
or  at  all  events  of  Roman  date.  The  late  Mr.  Thomas  Wright  + 
was  the  most  ardent  advocate  of  this  latter  view,  and  he  has  been  to 
some  extent  supported  by  Mr.  C.  Roach  Smith.  §  The  contrary 
view,  that  the  swords  belong  to  a  Bronze  Age  before  the  use  of 
that  metal  was  superseded  by  that  of  iron,  has  been  ably  advocated 
by  the  late  Mr.  A.  Henry  Rhind,  F,S,A,Scot.,||  and  Sir  John 
Lubbock.1I  It  seems  almost  needless  for  me  here  to  enter  further 
into  this  controversy,  in  which,  to  my  mind,  as  already  stated 
in  the  Introductory  Chapter,  the  whole  weight  of  the  argu- 
ment is  in  favour  of  a  pre-Roman  origin  for  these  swords  in 
Western  and  Northern  Europe.  There  was  no  doubt  a  time  when 
bronze  swords  were  in  use  in  Greece  and  Italy,  and  the  substitu- 
tion of  iron  or  steel  for  bronze,  so  far  as  we  can  judge  from  the 
early  iron  swords  found  in  the  ancient  cemetery  at  Hallstatt  and 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  60.  t  A.  A.  J.,  vol.  xv.  p.  230. 

J  "  On  the  True  Assignation  of  the  Bronze  Weapons,"  &c.,  Trans.  Ethn.  Soc.,  N.S., 
vol.  iv.  p.  176.  The  Celt,  Roman  and  Saxon,  2nd  Ed.  p.  7,  et  seqq. 

§  "  Catal.  Lond.  Ant.,"  p.  80.  ||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  72. 

U  "  Preh.  Times,"  4th  Ed.  p.  17 ;  Tram.  Ethn.  Soc.,  N.S.,  vol.  v.  p.  105. 


THE    ROMAN   SWORD.  275 

elsewhere,  involved  little  if  any  alteration  in  the  form  and  character 
of  the  weapon,  which  was  better  adapted  for  thrusting  than  for 
striking.  Even  here  in  Britain,  by  the  time  when  the  Roman 
invasion  took  place,  not  only  were  swords  made  of  iron  in  use,  but 
the  form  of  what  is  known  as  the  Late-Celtic*  sword  was  no 
longer  leaf-shaped,  but  slightly  tapering,  with  the  edges  nearly 
straight  almost  as  far  as  the  point.  Among  the  Romans  it 
would  seem  that  more  than  one  change  was  made  in  the  form 
of  their  swords  after  the  introduction  of  iron  as  the  material 
from  which  they  were  formed.  As  Mr.  Rhind  has  pointed 
out,  Polybius  speaks  of  the  swords  wielded  by  the  soldiers  of 
^Emilius  at  the  battle  of  Telamon,  B.C.  225,  as  made  not  only  to 
thrust  but  to  give  a  falling  stroke  with  singular  effect.  "  During 
the  Second  Punic  War,  however,  which  immediately  succeeded  the 
battle  of  Telamon,  the  Romans  adopted  the  Spanish  sword,"  the 
material  of  which  we  have  no  difficulty  in  definitely  ascertaining,  as 
"Diodorus  Siculusf  particularly  mentions  the  process  by  which  the 
Celtiberians  prepared  their  iron  for  the  purpose  of  manufacturing 
swords  so  tempered  that  neither  shield,  helmet,  nor  bone  could  resist 
them."  How  far  their  process  of  burying  iron  underground  until 
a  part  of  it  had  rusted  away  would,  in  the  case  of  charcoal  iron, 
leave  the  remaining  portion  more  of  the  nature  of  steel,  I  am  un- 
able to  say.  Perhaps  the  amount  of  manipulation  in  charcoal 
necessary  to  restore  the  rusted  plates  to  a  serviceable  condition 
may  have  produced  this  effect  of  converting  the  iron  into  mild  steel. 
The  steel  of  the  sabres  made  in  Japan,  +  which  will  cut  through  an 
iron  nail  without  their  edge  being  injured,  is  said  to  be  prepared 
in  a  similar  manner  from  iron  long  buried  underground. 

Most  of  the  bronze  swords  are  shorter  than  those  of  the  present 
day;  but  the  Roman  sword  would,  in  the  time  of  Julius,  appear  to 
have  been  longer  than  ours.  Otherwise  Cicero's  joke  about  his  son- 
in-law,  Lentulus,  would  have  but  little  point,  however  small  in 
person  he  may  have  been.  Indeed,  Macrobius§  expressly  says  that 
it  was  a  long  sword  that  Lentulus  was  wearing  when  Cicero  made 
the  inquiry,  Who  has  tied  my  son-in-law  to  a  sword  ? 

The  swords  in  use  among  the  Britons  at  a  somewhat  later  period 
appear  to  have  been  of  great  size,  for  Tacitus  speaks  of  them  as 
"  ingentes  "  and  "  enormes."  They  were  also  bluntly  pointed,  or 
"  sine  mucrone."  Such  a  description  is  entirely  inconsistent  with 

*  See  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pis.  xiv.,  xv.,  and  xviii.  t  Lib.  v.  c.  33. 

J  Beckman,  "  History  of  Inventions,"  vol.  ii.  p.  328.       §  "  Saturn.,"  lib.  ii.  cap.  3. 

T2 


276  LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS.  [CHAP.  XII. 

the  form  and  size  of  our  bronze  swords,  though  it  might  well  refer 
to  some  of  the  iron  blades  of  the  Late-Celtic  Period,  which  are  3  feet 
in  length.  Others  are,  however,  shorter. 

Of  the  comparative  rarity  of  bronze  swords  in  Italy,  and  of  their 
abundance  in  Scandinavia  and  Ireland,  countries  never  occupied 
by  the  Romans,  Sir  John  Lubbock*  has  already  spoken  ;  and  he 
has  also  summarized  the  reasons  which  convince  him,  as  they  do 
me,  that  our  bronze  weapons  cannot  be  referred  to  Roman  times. 
I  will  only  repeat  one  of  the  arguments,  of  which  perhaps  not 
sufficient  use  has  been  made.  It  is  that  at  the  time  when  Julius 
Caesar  was  invading  Britain,  and  its  inhabitants  were  thus  for  the 
first  time  brought  in  contact  with  Roman  weapons,  iron  had  been 
so  long  in  use  for  swords  in  Italy  that  the  term  for  the  weapon 
was  "ferrum." 

Another  feature  in  bronze  swords,  which  has  been  frequently 
commented  on  by  archaeological  writers,  is  the  comparatively  small 
size  of  the  hilt.  "  The  handles  are  always  very  small,  a  fact  which 
tends  to  prove  that  the  men  who  used  these  swords  were  but  of 
moderate  stature." t  "The  handles  of  the  bronze  swords  are  very 
short  and  could  not  have  been  held  comfortably  by  hands  as  large 
as  GUI'S — a  characteristic  much  relied  on  by  those  who  attribute 
the  introduction  of  bronze  into  Europe  to  a  people  of  Asiatic 
origin. "  + 

I  must  confess  that  I  regard  this  view  of  the  smallness  of  the 
hilts  as  being  somewhat  exaggerated.  My  own  hand  is  none  of 
the  smallest,  and  yet  where  the  bronze  hilts  of  the  Danish  and 
Hungarian  swords  have  been  preserved  I  have  no  difficulty  in 
finding  room  to  clasp  them.  The  part  of  the  hilt  where  it  expands 
to  embrace  the  base  of  the  blade  was,  I  think,  probably  intended 
to  be  within  the  grasp  of  the  hand,  and  not  to  be  beyond  it  as  a 
guard.  In  the  case  of  some  of  the  short  dagger-like  weapons  it 
seems  possible  that  the  projecting  rim,  which  forms  a  kind  of 
pommel  at  the  end  of  the  hilt,  was  intended  to  rest  between  the 
fourth  and  the  little  finger,  and  thus  to  assist  in  its  being  grasped 
firmly  when  in  use  as  a  stabbing  weapon.  When  the  plates  of 
horn  or  wood,  which,  as  we  shall  subsequently  see,  once  covered 
the  hilt  portion  of  the  sword,  have  perished,  it  is  hard  to  realise 
what  was  the  exact  form  of  the  hilt ;  but  it  is  quite  evident  that 
we  must  not  assume  that  because  the  bare  bronze  does  not  fill  the 

*    'Preh.  Times,"  p.  22.  f  Worsaae's  "Prim.  Ant.  of  Denmark,"  p.  29. 

t  Lubbock,  "Preh.  Times,"  p.  32. 


HILTS   PROPORTIONAL   TO    BLADES.  277 

hand  so  as  to  give  it  a  good  grip,  the  same  was  the  case  when  it 
had  a  plate  of  some  other  material  on  each  face,  which  also  possibly 
projected  beyond  the  sides. 

There  is,  moreover,  one  peculiarity  about  the  hilt-plates  of  these 
swords  which  I  have  often  pointed  out  by  word  of  mouth,  but 
which  I  think  has  not  as  yet  been  noticed  in  print.  It  is  that 
there  is  generally,  though  not  universally,  a  proportion  between 
the  length  of  the  blade  and  the  length  of  the  hilt-plate  ;  long  sword 
blades  having  as  a  rule  long  hilt-plates,  and  short  sword  blades 
short  hilt-plates.  So  closely  is  this  kind  of  proportion  preserved, 
that  the  outline  of  a  large  sword  on  the  scale  of  one-sixth  would 
in  some  cases  almost  absolutely  correspond  with  that  of  one  which 
was  two-thirds  of  its  length,  if  drawn  on  the  scale  of  one-fourth. 

This  relative  proportion  between  the  length  and  size  of  a  blade 
and  its  handle  is  by  no  means  restricted  to  the  swords  of  the 
Bronze  Period,  but  prevails  also  among  various  tools,  such  as  the 
saws  and  chisels  of  the  present  day.  If,  for  instance,  we  were  to 
argue  from  the  saw-handles  in  a  carpenter's  shop  as  to  the  size  of 
the  hands  of  the  carpenters,  we  should  soon  find  ourselves  in 
difficulties.  The  handle  of  an  ordinary  hand-saw  is  sufficiently 
large  to  admit  the  hand  of  any  one  short  of  a  giant,  while  the 
orifice  in  the  handle  of  a  small  keyhole-saw  will  not  admit  more 
than  a  couple  of  fingers,  and  the  handles  of  saws  of  intermediate 
size  range  between  these  two  extremes.  This  fact  suffices  to  incul- 
cate caution  in  arguing  from  the  hilt-plates  of  the  bronze  swords 
as  to  the  size  of  the  hands  of  those  who  used  them.  It  is  a 
question  which  will  be  more  safely  determined  on  osteological  than 
archaeological  evidence  ;  but,  owing  to  the  remarkable  absence  of 
bronze  swords  from  the  interments  in  our  barrows,  it  may  be  some 
time  before  a  sword  and  the  bones  of  the  hand  that  wielded  it 
are  found  in  juxtaposition. 

Professor  Rolleston*  has  well  said,  "  I  am  not  quite  clear  that 
this  bronze  sword,  leaf-shaped  or  other,  has  always  a  very  small 
hilt."  "At  any  rate,  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  in  this  country  the 
skeletons  of  the  Bronze  Period  belonged  to  much  larger  and 
stronger  and  taller  men  than  did  the  skeletons  of  the  Long  Barrow 
stone-using  folk  who  preceded  them.  In  some  parts  of  England 
the  contrast  in  this  matter  of  size  between  the  men  of  the  Bronze 
and  those  of  the  Stone  Age  is  as  great  as  that  now  existing  between 
the  Maori  and  the  gentle  Hindoo." 

*  Trans,  Brist.  and  Gloue.  Arch.  Soc. 


278 


LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS 


[CHAP.  xii. 


The  stature  of  several  of  the  men  interred  in  the  Yorkshire 
barrows,  examined  by  Canon  Greenwell,  was  not  less 
than  five  feet  nine  inches,  and  the  bones  of  the  hands 
were  proportional  to  those  of  the  bodies  ;  but,  unfor- 
tunately, no  bronze  swords  accompanied  them,  though 
many  of  the  interments  were  of  the  Bronze  Age. 

The  usual  form  of  sword  to  which  the  term  "  leaf- 
shaped"  has  been  applied  is  that  shown  in  Fig.  342. 
Their  total  length  is  generally  about  24  inches,  though 
sometimes  not  more  than  16  inches,  but  they  are 
occasionally  as  long  as  30  inches,  or  even  more. 
The  blades  are  in  most  cases  uniformly  rounded,  but 
with  the  part  next  the  edge  slightly  drawn  down  so 
as  to  form  a  shallow  fluting.  In  some  instances,  how- 
ever, there  is  a  more  or  less  bold  rounded  central  rib, 
or  else  projecting  ridges  running  along  the  greater 
part  of  the  blade  near  the  edges.  They  differ  consi- 
derably in  the  form  of  the  plate  for  the  hilt,  and  in 
the  number  and  arrangement  of  the  rivets  by  which 
the  covering  material  was  attached.  This  latter,  as 
will  subsequently  be  seen,  usually  consisted  of  plates 
of  horn,  bone,  or  wood,  riveted  on  each  side  of  the 
hilt-plate.  In  rare  instances  the  outer  part  of  the 
hilt  was  of  bronze.  Of  the  scabbards  of  such  swords 
and  the  chapes  attached  to  them  I  shall  subsequently 
speak. 

The  sword  shown  in  Fig.  342  was  found  about  the  year 
1864  in  the  Thames,  near  Battersea  Bridge,  and  is  now  in 
my  own  collection.  Its  length  is  25J  inches,  and  the  blade 
is  2^  inches  broad  in  its  broadest  part,  though  at  the  top  of 
the  hilt  it  is  2f  inches  in  breadth..  Just  above  this  point 
the  edge  of  the  blade  has  been  removed  so  as  to  form  two 
broad  notches,  the  object  being  probably  to  save  the  hand 
of  the  warrior  from  being  cut  should  the  sword  be  drawn 
back  in  his  hand,  there  being  apparently  no  transverse 
guard.  The  hilt  has  been  attached  by  rivets  or  pins  pass- 
ing through  three  longitudinal  slots,  which  have  been  pro- 
duced in  the  casting,  and  not  subsequently  drilled  or  made. 
The  hilt-plate  expands  into  a  kind  of  fish-tail  termination, 
which  was  probably  enclosed  in  a  pommel-like  end  formed 
by  the  plates  of  horn,  or  other  material,  of  which  the  hilt 
was  made. 

I  have  another  sword,  about  21  inches  in  length,  which 
was  found  in  the  year  1851  near  the  circular  encampment 


WITH    CENTRAL   SLOTS    IN    HILT. 


279 


at  Hawridge,  on  the  south-eastern  border  of  Buckingham- 
shire. The  hilt-plate  is  of  the  same  character  as  that  of 
Fig.  342,  but  the  lower  slot  is  longer  and  the  upper  ones 
shorter.  In  the  latter  were  found  the  bronze  rivets  for 
fastening  on  the  hilt.  This  blade  is  figured  on  a  small  scale 
in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.* 

Another  sword  (22  inches)  of  the  same  character,  with 
three  pointed  oval  slots  for  the  rivets,  was  found  at  Wash- 
ingborough,f  Lincolnshire.  Two  other  leaf-shaped  swords 
were  found  near  the  same  spot.  Another  (24  inches),  found 
near  Midsummer  Norton,  J  Somerset,  has  the  central  slot 
nearly  rectangular. 

The  central  slot  is  sometimes  accompanied  by  two  or  more 
rivet-holes  in  the  projecting  wings  of  the  hilt-plate.  A 
sword  (24  inches)  with  two  rivets  was  found  between  Wood- 
lands and  Grussage  St.  Michael,  §  Dorset.  Another,  broken, 
was  found,  with  fragments  of  others,  socketed  celts,  spear- 
heads, a  sickle,  and  other  objects,  near  the  Pierre  du  Villain, 
Alderney.|| 

One  (24£  inches)  from  the  Thames,^  at  Battersea,  and  now 
in  the  Bateman  Collection,  has  a  long  rectangular  slot  and 
four  rivets.  One  of  two  (24  inches),  found  in  broken  condi- 
tion, with  a  spear-head  and  two  ferrules,  on  Fulbourn  Com- 
mon,** near  Cambridge,  was  of  this  type.  Another,  from 
Aldreth,  Cambs.  (23£  inches),  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cam- 
bridge Antiquarian  Society. 

I  have  an  example,  originally  26  inches  long,  found  with 
a  leaf-shaped  spear-head  near  Weymouth. 

The  type  occurs  also  in  France.  I  have  one  (18|  inches), 
with  a  slot  and  four  rivets,  from  Albert,  near  Amiens. 
Another  was  found  near  Argenteuil,ff  Seine  et  Oise.  I 
have  seen  a  bronze  sword  from  Spain,  also  with  the  three 
slots. 

In  the  collection  of  Canon  Green  well,  F.E.S.,  is  a  re- 
markably fine  sword  (27£  inches)  from  Barrow,  Suffolk,  in 
which  the  long  slot  in  the  hilt-plate  is  combined  with  ten 
small  rivet-holes.  The  central  ridge  on  the  blade  is  well 
pronounced,  as  will  be  seen  by  Fig.  343.  The  blunted  part 
of  the  blade  near  the  hilt  is  engraved  or  milled  diagonally. 
The  number  of  rivets  is  here  larger  than  usual ;  but  in  a 
sword  (28£  inches)  from  the  Thames,  near  Vauxhall,JJ  there 
are  five  rivet-holes  in  the  centre  of  the  plate  in  lieu  of  the 
slot,  and  four  in  each  of  the  wings — thirteen  in  all.  In 
another  (23£  inches)  from  the  same  locality  there  are  eleven, 

*  1st  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  215. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  263  ;  vol.  xv.  230,  pi.  23,  5. 

J  Somerset  Arch,  and  N.  H.  Soc.  Proc.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  70,  pi.  iii. 

$  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  229,  pi.  23,  3. 

||   Op.  cit.,  vol.  iii.  p.  9. 

IT  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  328,  pi.  xxiv.  6. 

**  Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  56,  pi.  iv. 

ft  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  v.  pi.  ix.  1. 

J|  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  60. 


Fig.  343. 
Barrow.    \ 


280  LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS  [CHAP.  XII. 

three  in  each  wing  and  five  in  the  centre.  One  (27  inches)  from  the 
Thames,  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries,  has  ten  rivets,  of 
which  four  are  in  the  centre. 

Another  (28£  inches)  with  ten  rivet-holes,  four  in  the  hilt-plate  and 
three  in  each  wing,  was  found  in  the  Thames*  in  1856,  and  is  in  the 
British  Museum. 

A  sword  from  the  Eoach  Smith  Collection  (20f  inches)  has  a  well- 
marked  midrib  to  the  blade,  which  is  somewhat  hollowed  on  either  side 
of  it.  The  hilt-plate  has  the  central  slot  and  four  rivet-holes,  in  which 
two  rivets  remain. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  another  sword  (27f  inches)  of  much  the  same 
form  at  the  hilt,  but  with  ten  rivet-holes,  three  in  each  wing  and  four  in 
the  central  plate,  which  is  prolonged  beyond  the  fishtail-like  expansion  in 
the  form  of  a  fiat  tang,  1  inch  by  f  inch.  It  was  found  in  the  Lea,f  near 
London.  The  lower  part  of  the  hilt  has  been  united  to  the  blade  by  a 
subsequent  process  of  burning  on,  as  will  shortly  be  mentioned. 

This  prolongation  of  the  hilt-plate  is  not  singular.  In  the  Eouen 
Museum  is  a  sword  with  thirteen  rivets  which  exhibits  this  peculiarity. 
The  same  exists  in  a  Swiss  Lake  J  sword,  and  is  not  uncommon  in  swords 
found  in  Italy. 

Another  sword  from  the  Thames  (23  inches)  has  five  holes  in  the  hilt- 
plate  and  four  in  each  wing.  The  blade,  which  expands  from  1 J  inch 
near  the  hilt  to  2£  inches  at  two-thirds  of  its  length,  is  ornamented  with 
a  single  engraved  line  skirting  the  edge. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  another  remarkably  fine  sword  from  the 
Thames,  ornamented  in  a  similar  manner,  but  with  a  slot  in  the  hilt-plate 
and  three  rivet-holes  in  each  wing.  The  blade  is  24£  inches  long  and 
from  If  inch  to  2f  inches  wide. 

Another,  from  Battle,  Sussex  (29^  inches),  has  eleven  rivets,  three  in 
the  hilt-plate,  which  is  in  form  much  like  that  of  Fig.  343.  The  blade  is 
drawn  down  towards  the  edges.  The  lower  end  shows  where  the  runner 
was  broken  off  after  it  was  cast,  and  is  left  quite  rough,  thus  raising  the 
presumption  that  it  was  covered  by  some  kind  of  pommel.  Five  rivets 
are  still  preserved. 

A  sword  from  the  Medway,  at  Upnor  Reach,  is  31^  inches  long  and 
If  inch  wide  at  the  broadest  part.  It  has  no  less  than  fifteen  rivet-holes 
for  the  hilt,  in  three  groups  of  five  each. 

One  from  the  Thames  (28£  inches),  with  plain  blade  and  thirteen  rivet- 
holes,  has  five  small  rivets  still  in  situ. 

More  commonly  the  rivet-holes  are  fewer  in  number.  One  (24£  inches) 
in  Canon  Green  well's  Collection,  from  Broadway  Tower,  Broadway, 
Worcester,  has  nine  rivet-holes,  three  in  the  tang  and  three  in  each  wing. 
One  from  the  Thames  at  Battersea  §  (26  inches),  and  one  from  Ebberston, 
Yorkshire,  in  the  Bateman  Collection,  have  the  rivets  arranged  in  the 
same  manner,  as  has  one  which  was  found  near  Whittingham,  ||  Northum- 
berland, with  another  sword  subsequently  to  be  described,  and  also  with 
three  spear-heads. 

*  See  "Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  2,  p.  161. 

t  Proe.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  50 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  91. 

+  Keller,  8ter  Bericht,  Taf.  iii.  1. 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  329 ;  op.  eit.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  244. 

B  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  429. 


WITH    MANY    RIVET-HOLES. 


281 


I  have  one  (19  inches)  with  eight  rivet-holes,  four  in  the 
centre  and  two  in  each  wing,  found  near  Cambridge.  The 
holes  appear  to  have  been  either  made  or  enlarged  by  a 
punch  having  been  driven  through  them,  the  rough  burr 
being  left  on.  On  either  side  of  the  central  ridge  of  the  blade 
there  is  a  pair  of  engraved  lines  parallel  to  the  edges  and  at 
about  i  inch  distant  from  them.  The  base  of  the  blade  next 
the  expansion  for  the  hilt  has  been  neatly  serrated  or  en- 
grailed, like  that  of  the  sword  from  Barrow,  but  in  this 
case  transversely.  Unfortunately  this  blade,  which  is  beau- 
tifully patinated,  has  been  broken  into  three  pieces. 

French  swords  of  this  class,  both  with  a  central  slot  com- 
bined with  rivets  and  with  rivets  only,  are  by  no  means 
uncommon.  Specimens  of  each,  from  the  department  of 
Seine  et  Oise,  are  figured  in  the  ' '  Dictionnaire  Archeologique 
de  la  Graule."  One  with  a  slot  and  four  rivets  is  in  the 
museum  at  Nantes.  Two  with  seven  rivet-holes  were  found 
at  St.  Nazaire-sur-Loire  *  (Loire  Inferieure). 

Seven  is,  indeed,  a  more  usual  number  for  the  rivet-holes 
than  any  of  these  higher  numbers.  In  Fig.  344  is  shown  a 
fine  example  of  a  sword  with  seven  rivet-holes,  found  in  the 
Tyne,  near  Newcastle,  and  now  in  the  collection  of  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.R.S.  It  is  28  inches  in  length,  and  has  a  bead 
or  rib  just  within  the  edges,  which  is  somewhat  exaggerated 
in  the  figure.  The  hilt-plate  is  provided  with  slight  flanges 
for  retaining  the  horn  or  wood  that  formed  the  hilt,  and  has 
a  semicircular  notch  at  the  base,  possibly  for  the  reception  of 
a  rivet.  See  Fig.  356. 

A  sword  from  the  Thames  near  Battersea  (28 f-  inches),  in 
the  British  Museum,  is  of  nearly  the  same  form  as  Fig,  344, 
but  the  end  of  the  hilt-plate  has  no  notch,  and  there  is  no 
midrib  running  down  it.  The  hilt  has  been  fastened  by 
seven  rivets,  which  fit  tightly  in  the  holes  and  are  nearly  all 
in  position.  Their  ends  have  conical  depressions  in  them, 
as  if  a  punch  had  been  used  as  a  riveting  tool.  In  some  the 
rivets  have  been  closed  by  a  hollow  punch,  so  as  to  leave  a 
small  stud  projecting  in  the  middle  of  each  surrounded  by 
a  deep  hollow  ring.  Some  French  swords  present  the  same 
peculiarity. 

A  sword  of  the  same  form  (23£  inches),  but  with  a  plain 
blade  and  only  five  small  rivet-holes,  was  found  in  the  Med- 
way  at  Chatham  Eeach,  and  is  now  in  the  same  collection. 
The  hilt  seems  to  have  been  burnt  on. 

A  sword  of  this  form  (25£  inches),  with  raised  ridges 
parallel  to  the  edges,  has  a  rounded  end  to  the  hilt-plate  and 
holes  for  six  very  small  pins  or  rivets  at  the  base  and  for  one 
large  one.  The  hilt-plate  has  been  much  hammered.  It  was 
found  in  the  Thames.  A  second  (24f  inches),  almost  identical 
in  every  respect,  has  retained  five  of  its  pins. 

There  are  two  swords  in  the  Norwich  Museum,  each  of 
them  with  seven  rivet-holes,  both  21^  inches  long,  but  the 

*  Rev.  Arch.,  vol.  xxxiii.  p.  231. 


Fig.  344.— New- 
castle.   J 


282  LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS  [CHAP.  XII. 

one  found  at  Woolpit,  Suffolk,  and  the  other  at  Windsor.  One  of 
the  swords  found  at  Fulbourn,*  Cambridge,  had  its  rivets  arranged 
as  in  Fig.  344.  The  blade  is  somewhat  fluted  between  the  central 
ridge  and  has  smaller  ridges  running  parallel  to  the  edges.  An- 
other (23£  inches),  found  in  Glamorganshire,!  is  of  the  same  character. 
Another  like  this  was  found  in  the  bed  of  the  Lark,t  at  Icklingham, 
Suffolk. 

I  have  two  swords  (about  23  inches)  with  seven  rivet-holes,  which  were 
found  with  spear-heads,  a  halberd,  and  other  objects  at  Stoke  Ferry, 
Norfolk.  They  are  unfortunately  broken.  One  of  them  appears  to  have 
been  a  defective  casting,  and  to  have  wanted  a  portion  of  its  hilt-plate. 
This  has  been  subsequently  supplied  by  a  second  hilt-plate  having  been 
cast  over  the  broken  end  of  the  original  plate,  a  hole  in  which  has  been 
stopped  with  a  rivet,  which  has  been  partly  covered  over  by  the  metal  of 
the  second  casting.  This  is  not  an  unique  instance  of  mending  by 
burning  on  additional  metal.  I  have  a  small  leaf-shaped  sword  (17-jj- 
inches),  for  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  Earl  of  Enniskillen,  found  near 
Thornhill,  Killina,  Co.  Cavan,  which  has  in  old  times  had  a  new  hilt-plate 
cast  on  the  original  blade  in  this  manner. 

Other  swords  with  seven  rivet-holes  arranged  as  in  Fig.  344  have 
been  found  near  Alton  Castle,  ||  Staffordshire,  and  at  Billinghay,§ 
Lincoln. 

A  sword  with  six  rivet-holes  (23  inches)  was  found  near  Cranbourne,^[ 
Dorset.  Another  of  the  same  length  was  dug  up  at  Stifford,**  near  Gray's 
Thurrock,  Essex.  Another  (20£  inches)  was  found  in  the  Severn  ff  at 
Buildwas,  Salop.  The  rivet-holes  are  two  in  the  middle  and  two  in  each 
wing. 

A  leaf-shaped  sword,  the  hilt  broken  off,  but  the  blade  still  22£  inches 
long,  was  found  with  a  bronze  spear-head,  a  palstave,  and  a  long  pin,  in 
the  Thames,  j J  near  the  mouth  of  the  Wandle.  It  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum. 

A  sword  with  the  hilt-plate  like  that  of  Fig.  344  has  been  found  in 
Ehenish  Hesse.  §§ 

Another  variety  of  the  sword  has  a  strong  central  rounded  rib  along 
the  blade,  of  which  kind  a  good  example  is  shown  in  Fig.  345.  The 
original  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Robert  Fitch,  F.S.A.,  who  has  kindly 
lent  it  to  me  for  engraving.  It  was  found  at  Wetheringsett,||||  Suffolk, 
and  is  said  to  have  had  remains  of  a  wooden  hilt  and  scabbard  attached 
to  it  when  found.  Human  bones  are  also  reported  to  have  been  found 
near  it.  It  is  25£  inches  long,  with  engraved  lines  on  the  hilt,  and 
has  only  two  rivet-holes  besides  the  central  square-ended  slot. 

Mr.  Fisher,  of  Ely,  has  a  sword  of  the  same  character  (25  inches),  but 
with  four  rivets  and  a  slot,  found  in  the  Fens  near  Ely. 

A  fragment  of  what  appears  to  have  been  a  sword  of  the  same  character, 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  56,  pi.  iv. ;  Skelton's  "Meyrick's  Anc.  Armour,"  pi.  xlvii.  14. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  67 ;  Arch.,  xliii.  p.  480. 

I  Bury  and  West  Su/.  Proe.,  i.  p.  24.  §  "  Beliquary,"  vol.  iii.  p.  219. 

|j  Arch.,  vol.  xi.  p.  431,  pi.  xix.  9. 

IT  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  229,  pi.  xxiii.  2. 

**  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  406;  Arch.  Jotirn.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  191. 

ft-  "Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  5,  p.  162.  JJ  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  7. 

§§  Lmdenscnmit,  "A.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  iii.  Taf.  iii.  5. 

Illl  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  254;  xv.  p.  230,  pi.  xxiii.  No.  4. 


WITH    CENTRAL    RIB    ON    BLADE. 


283 


but  with  two  rivet-holes  instead  of  the  central  slot,  was 
found  with  socketed  celts  and  spear-heads  at  Bilton,* 
Yorkshire. 

I  have  a  fragment  of  a  blade  of  this  kind  in  the  Reach 
Fen  hoard.  Another  fragment,  from  Chrishall,  Essex,  is 
in  the  British  Museum,  as  is  also  one  found  under 
Beachy  Head.f  It  has  two  rivet-holes  in  each  wing, 
and  three  considerably  larger  in  the  centre.  They  ap- 
pear to  be  cast,  and  not  drilled.  "With  this  fragment 
were  found  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  lumps  of  copper, 
and  gold  armlets. 

The  type  also  occurs  in  France.  I  have  a  specimen 
from  the  Seine  at  Paris,  with  the  hilt  and  lower  part 
almost  identical  with  Fig.  345,  but  the  blade  does  not 
expand  in  the  same  manner,  and  has  two  lines  engraved 
on  each  side  of  the  central  rib,  the  inner  pair  meeting 
on  the  rib  some  little  way  from  the  point,  the  outer  con- 
tinued to  nearly  the  end  of  the  blade.  I  have  fragments 
of  a  sword  of  similar  character  from  the  hoard  found  at 
Dreuil,  near  Amiens.  The  fragment  from  Beachy  Head 
already  mentioned  may  possibly  be  of  Gaulish  origin. 

On  an  Italian  oblong  bronze  coin  or  quincussis, 
G|  inches  by  3|  inches,  and  weighing  about  3J  Ibs., 
is  the  representation  of  a  leaf- shaped  sword  with  a 
raised  rib  along  the  centre  of  the  blade,  and  in 
general  character  much  like  Fig.  345.  A  specimen 
of  this  coin  is  in  the  British  Museum.  +  and  bears 
upon  the  reverse  the  figure  of  a  scabbard  with 
parallel  sides,  and  a  nearly  circular  chape.  Another 
coin  of  the  same  type,  engraved  by  Carelli,§  has  a 
nearly  similar  scabbard  on  the  reverse,  but  the  sword 
on  the  obverse  is  either  represented  as  being  in  its 
scabbard  or  is  not  at  all  leaf-shaped,  the  sides  of  the 
blade  being  parallel.  The  hilt  is  also  curved,  and 
there  is  a  cross-guard.  In  fact,  upon  the  one  coin, 
the  weapon  has  the  appearance  of  a  Roman  sword 
of  iron,  and  on  the  other  that  of  a  leaf-shaped  sword 
of  bronze.  These  pieces  were  no  doubt  cast  in 
Umbria,  probably  in  the  third  century  B.C.,  but  their 
attribution  to  Ariminum  is  at  best  doubtful.  From 
the  two  varieties  of  sword  appearing  on  coins  of  the 
same  type,  the  inference  may  be  drawn  either  that 


*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  349. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  363. 

J  Catal.  of  Gr.  Coins  in  Brit.  Mus.,  Italy,  p. 

§  "  Numm.  Vet.  Ital.  descript.,"  pi.  xli. 


•28. 


Fig.  345.— Wether- 
ingsett.    I 


284 


LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS, 


[CHAP.  xn. 


at  the  time  when  they  were  cast,  bronze  swords  were  in  Umbria 
being  superseded  by  those  of  iron  ;  or  that  the  type  originally 
referred  to  some  sacred  weapon  of  bronze  such  as  is  represented 
on  the  coin  in  the  British  Museum,  but  was  subsequently  made 
more  conventional  so  as  to  represent  the  sword  in  ordinary  use 
at  the  period. 

The  sword  with  a  central  rib  was  sometimes  at- 
tached to  the  hilt  in  a  different  manner  from  any 
of  the  blades  hitherto  described,  as  will  be  seen 
by  Fig.  346,  copied  from  the  ArcJiaological  Asso- 
ciation Journal.*  This  sword  was  found  at  Tiver- 
ton,  near  Bath,  and  it  is  provided  with  four 
rivets,  a  pair  on  each  side  of  the  continuation  of 
the  central  rib  along  the  hilt-plate.  Human  re- 
mains and  stag's-horns  are  said  to  have  been 
found  near  it. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  blade  of  the  same 
kind  (19f  inches),  with  semicircular  notches  for 
the  four  rivets.  It  was  found  in  the  Thames  at 
Kingston.  Another  from  the  Thames  (21  inches) 
has  the  two  upper  holes  perfect. 

Leaf-shaped  swords  of  the  ordinary  type  also 
occasionally  had  their  hilts  attached  in  the  same 
manner.  Fig.  347  shows  a  blade  from  the 
Thames,f  near  Kingston  (16  £  inches)  with  the 
rivet-holes  thus  arranged.  I  have  another,  from 
the  Hugo  Collection  (18  inches),  found  in  the 
Thames  about  a  mile  west  from  Barking  Creek,  \ 
which  has  had  four  rivet-holes  arranged  in  the 
same  manner,  though  the  margins  are  now  broken 
away,  so  that  only  traces  of  the  holes  remain. 
Another  apparently  of  this  type  was  found  in 
Lincolnshire.  § 

In  Canon  Greenwell's  Collection  is  a  leaf  -shaped 
blade  of  the  same  character  (15f  inches),  which, 
however,  has  only  two  rivet-holes,  one  on  each 
side  of  the  hilt-plate.  It  was  found  at  Sand- 
ford,  ||  near  Oxford,  together  with  a  rapier-shaped 


A'  Fig.  346.  Fig.  347. 

Another  variety  has  a  narrower  tang  and  rivet     Tiverton.  j      Kingston,  j 
holes  in  the  median  line.     A  blade  of  this  kind, 

which  is  in    Mr.   Layton's  Collection,   was  found    in  the  Thames   at 
Greenwich,  and  is  engraved  in  the  Archaological  Journal.*^ 

Before  proceeding  to  the  consideration  of  the  swords  with  more  perfect 
hilts  and  pommels  found  in  England,  it  will  be  well  to  give  references  to 

*  Vol.  iv.  p.  147  ;  vol.  iii.  p.  334. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  327;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  83,  No.  14. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  44. 

\  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  91.  ||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  301. 

H  Anth.  Inst.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  230. 


LOCALITIES   WHERE    FOUND.  285 

some  of  the  other  instances  of  leaf-shaped  swords  found  in  this  country 
and  in  Wales.  Several  have  been  found  in  the  Thames  *  besides  those 
already  mentioned.  Others  have  been  discovered  in  the  Isle  of  Portland ;  f 
at  Brixworth,J  Northamptonshire ;  and  in  the  sea-dike  bank  between 
Fleet  and  Gedney,§  Lincolnshire.  Two,  one  with  the  chape  of  the 
scabbard,  of  which  more  hereafter,  were  found  at  EbberstonJ  Yorkshire. 

Two  were  found  at  Ewart  Park,^[  near  Wooler,  Northumberland,  one 
of  which  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Newcastle-on- 
Tyne. 

Some  fragments  of  swords,  regarded  as  being  of  copper,  were  found, 
with  spear-heads,  celts,  and  lumps  of  metal,  at  Lanant,**  and  also  at  St. 
Hilary,  Cornwall,  about  the  year  1802. 

There  were  also  some  fragments  in  the  Broadward  find,ff  Shropshire, 
which  consisted  principally  of  spear-heads  and  ferrules.  Occasionally  a 
considerable  number  of  swords  are  said  to  have  been  found  together. 
No  less  than  twenty  are  reported  to  have  been  discovered  about  the  year 
1726  near  Alnwick  Castle,  JJ  in  company  with  forty-one  socketed  celts  and 
sixteen  spear-heads ;  and  two  broad  swords,  one  sharp-pointed  sword,  a 
spear-point,  and  a  socketed  celt  were  found  "  in  a  bundle  together  "  at 
Ambleside,  Westmoreland,  §§  about  1741. 

Two  swords,  some  spear-heads,  celts,  and  other  relics  were  discovered 
at  Shenstone,  ||  ||  Staffordshire,  in  1824.  Near  them  are  said  to  have  been 
some  fragments  of  human  bones.  Some  swords  are  reported  to  have 
been  found  in  a  marsh  on  the  Wrekin  Tenement,  ^]^[  Shropshire,  with  a 
celt  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  fragments  of  spear-heads. 

Two  swords  and  a  fragment  of  a  third  were  found  in  the  Heathery 
Burn  Cave,  in  company  with  numerous  bronze  and  bone  instruments  and 
a  gold  armlet  and  penannular  hollow  bead.  Most  of  these  objects  are 
now  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.E.S.  Three  swords  were 
found  at  Branton,  Northumberland,  and  are  now  in  the  Alnwick  Museum  ; 
where  are  also  two  which  had  pommels  of  lead,  and  were  found  with 
two  rings  near  Tosson,  parish  of  Kothbury,  in  that  county.  Another, 
which  was  also  accompanied  by  two  rings,  were  found  near  Medomsley, 
Durham.  These  rings  may  in  some  manner  have  served  to  attach  the 
swords  to  a  belt. 

Most  of  the  swords  found  in  Wales  appear  to  be  in  a  fragmentary 
condition.  Engravings  of  some  leaf-shaped  swords  are  said  to  exist  on  a 
rock  between  Barmouth  ***  and  Dolgellau,  North  Wales. 

A  fragment  of  a  sword  was  found,  with  a  bronze  sheath-end,  looped  pal- 
staves, spear-heads,  and  a  ferrule,  near  Gruilsfield,fff  Montgomeryshire. 
Fragments  of  three  swords  were  found,  with  lance-heads,  ferrules,  a  chape, 
and  other  objects,  at  Glancych,|JJ  Cardiganshire.  They  appear  to  have 
had  six  rivets. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  158  (24-J  inches)  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  243. 
Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  482  (said  to  have  had  a  bone  or  wooden  hilt  when  found). 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  90.  £  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  356. 

§  Stukeley,  "It.  Cur.,"  vol.  i.  p.  14.  ||  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  321. 

If  Arch.  Mliana,  vol.  i.  p.  11,  pi.  iv.  3.  **  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.   118. 

tf  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  353.  Jf  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113. 

§§  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  115.  ||||  Arch.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  548. 

Iff  Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  464.  ***  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  91. 

ttt  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  250;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  214. 
JJt  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  221. 


286 


LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS 


[CHAP.  xn. 


English  swords,  with  the  hilts,  or  pommels,  or  both,  formed  of 
bronze,  are  not  of  common  occurrence.     The  first  which  I  have 

selected  for  illustration  has 
the  side  edges  so  straight 
that  it  hardly  belongs  to 

HA  |          the  class  usually  known  as 

•  leaf-shaped.   The  hilt-plate 

// 1\  is  peculiar  in  having  well- 

••  developed     side      flanges 

ill  which  expand  at  the  base 

Klin  so    as    to    form    an    oval 

III.)  j|j  pommel     The  hilt  has  as 

usual  been  formed  of  two 
plates  of  bone  or  wood, 
which  have  been  secured 
to  the  hilt-plate  by  six 
rivets.  This  sword,  which 
was  found  in  the  Fens, 

I  near  Ely,  has  unfortu- 
nately lost  its  point,  but 
is  still  191  inches  long. 
It  was  lent  me  for  engrav- 
ing (as  Fig.  348)  by  Mr. 
M.  Fisher,  of  Ely.  In 
some  Danish  examples  the 

high  flanges  of  the  hilt- 
plates  are  covered  by  thin 
plates  of  gold,  beyond 
which,  of  course,  the  hilt 
of  bone,  wood,  or  horn  did 
not  project,  and  no  doubt 
in  this  instance  also  the 
side  flanges  were  left  vi- 
sible and  not  in  any  way 
covered.  They  are  up- 
wards of  4  inches  in 
length,  so  that  the  hilt 
would  fit  into  a  large 
hand. 

A  small  but  very  interesting  sword  with  a  perfect  bronze  hilt 
and  pommel  is   shown  in  Fig.  349.      It  was   found  in  the  River 


Fig.  348.— Ely.        J 


Fig.  349.— River 
Cherwell. 


WITH    HILTS   OF    KKOXZE.  287 

Cher  well,*  and  is  now  in  the  Museum  at  Oxford.  It  was  kindly 
lent  me  by  Professor  Rolleston  for  the  purpose  of  engraving.  The 
total  length  of  the  weapon  is  21  inches,  of  which  the  pommel  and 
hilt,  which  is  adapted  for  a  decidedly  large  hand,  occupy  about  5 
inches.  The  hilt  has  the  appearance  of  having  been  cast  upon 
the  blade,  and  seems  to  be  formed  of  bronze  of  the  same 
character.  There  are  no  rivets  visible  by  which  the  two 
castings  are  attached  the  one  to  the  other. 

I  am  of  opinion  that  the  same  process  of  attaching 
the  hilt  to  the  blade  by  casting  the  one  upon  the  other 
was  in  use  in  Scandinavia  and  Germany.  Some  of  the 
bronze  daggers  from  Italy  seem  also  to  have  had  their 
hilts  cast  upon  the  blades  in  which  the  rivets  were 
already  fixed. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  sword  blade  with,  slight  ribs 
inside  the  edges,  retaining  a  portion  of  the  hilt,  which  is  cast 
in  a  separate  piece  and  attached  to  the  wings  by  two  rivets. 
It  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  the  Thames.f  The  hilt  has 
had  ribs  round  it  at  intervals  of  about  half  an  inch  apart. 

On  a  fragment  of  a  sword  blade,  ornamented  on  each  side 
with  five  parallel  engraved  lines,  the  upper  margin  of  the  hilt 
is  marked  out  by  a  raised  and  engrailed  line  of  the  same  form 
as  the  upper  end  of  the  hilt  of  Fig.  350.  It  was  found  in  the 
Fen,  near  Wicken,  Cambs,  with  a  part  of  a  scabbard  end, 
spear-heads,  and  other  objects  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  remarkably  fine  sword,  found  in  the  Eiver  Witham,  J 
below  Lincoln,  in  1826,  is  shown  in  Fig.  350,  for  the  use  of 
which.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiqua- 
ries. The  original  is  in  the  museum  of  the  Duke  of  Northum- 
berland, at  Alnwick.  It  presents  the  peculiarity  of  having 
two  spirals  attached  to  the  base  of  the  hilt  with  a  projecting 
pin  between  them,  the  whole  -taking  the  place  of  the  pom- 
mel. The  blade  appears  to  be  engraved  with,  parallel  lines 
on  either  side  of  the  midrib.  These  spirals  are  of  far  more 
common  occurrence  on  the  Continent  than  in  Britain,  and  this 
sword,  though  found  so  far  north  as  Lincoln,  is  not  impro- 
bably of  foreign  origin. 

Several  such,  have  been  found  in  France.     One  with  the 
spirals  but   a   different  form  of  hilt    was  found    at  Alies,        Fig.  350. 
Cantal.§  Ltac6ta' 

A  bronze  sword  found  in  the  Ehone  at  Lyons,  but  now  in 
the  museum  at  Eennes,  ||  Brittany,  has  a  nearly  similar  hilt  and  pommel. 
It  has  three  raised  bands  on  the  hilt,  but  no  pin  between  the  spirals. 
Some  of  the  swords  from  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings  have  similar  hilts. 

*  Journ.  Anthrop.  Inat.,  vol.  iii.  p.  204.      f  "  Horaa  Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  9,  p.  162. 

%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  199.  §  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xxiv.  pi.  xxv.  3. 

||  Chantre,  "  Alb.,"  pi.  xiv.  bis,  3 ;  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 


288 


LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS 


[CHAP.  xii. 


Fig.  351.— Whit- 

tingham.    J 


They  have  been  found  at  Concise,*  in  the 
Lake  of  Neuchatel,  and  in  the  Lac  de 
Luissel.f 

Another  of  the  same  kind  is  in  the 
Johanneuni  at  Gratz,  Styria.  The  same 
form  was  also  found  at  Hallstatt.j  An- 
other was  found  near  Stettin.  §  Another 
from  ErxlebenJ  Magdeburg,  is  in  the 
Brunswick  Museum. 

The  hilt  of  a  sword  with  spirals  and 
a  central  pin  was  found  in  the  great  Bo- 
logna hoard.  A  perfect  example  is  in  the 
Eoyal  Armoury  at  Turin. ^f 

There  are  several  swords  with  this  kind 
of  hilt  in  the  Museum  of  Northern  Anti- 
quities at  Copenhagen,**  some  of  which 
are  figured  by  Madsen.ff  The  spirals  are 
sometimes  found  detached.  A  highly  inte- 
resting paper  by  Dr.  Oscar  Montelius  on 
the  different  forms  of  hilts  of  bronze 
swords  and  daggers  is  published  in  the 
Stockholm  volume  of  the  Congress  for 
Prehistoric  Archaeology,  jj 

The  remarkable  sword  with  a  somewhat 
analogous  termination  to  the  hilt,  shown 
in  Fig.  351,  was  found  at  Thrunton  Farm,§§ 
in  the  parish  of  Whittingham,  Northum- 
berland, and  is  in  the  collection  of  Lord 
Kavensworth.  With  it  was  found  another 
sword  already  mentioned,  a  spear-head 
with  lunate  openings  in  the  blade  (Fig. 
418),  and  some  smaller  leaf-shaped  spear- 
heads. They  are  said  to  have  been  all 
found  sticking  in  a  moss  with  the  points 
downwards,  and  arranged  in  a  circle.  The 
pommel  end  of  the  hilt  is  in  this  instance 
a  distinct  casting,  and  is  very  remarkable 
on  account  of  the  two  curved  horns  ex- 


*  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  Taf.  iii.  4 ;  3ter  Bericht, 
Taf .  iii.  35 ;  Desor  and  Favre,  "  Le  Bel  Age  du 
Br.,"  pi.  v.  10;  Troyon,  "Habit.  Lacust.," 
pi.  ix.  11. 

t  Keller,  7ter  B.,  Taf.  xxiv.  9. 

J  Von  Sacken,  "  Grabf.  v.  Hallst.,"  pi.  v.  10. 

§  Lindenschmit,  "A.  u.  h.  V.,"  Heft  i.  Taf. 
ii.  1. 

||  "Zeitsch.  fur  Ethn.,"  vol.  vii.  Taf.  x.  2. 

f  "Bull,  di  Palet.  Ital.,"  anno  ii.,  p.  26. 

**  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.  B.  iv.,  40—42  ; 
Worsaae,  "  Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  135, 136. 

ft  "  Afbild,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  v.  vi. 

JJ  P.  882. 

§§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,vol.  v.  p.  429;  "Hora? 
Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  fig.  3,  p.  161. 


FOUND    IN    SCOTLAND.  289 

tending  from  it,  which  are  somewhat  trumpet-mouthed,  with  a  projecting 
cone  in  the  centre  of  each. 

In  Scotland  a  number  of  bronze  swords  have  been  found  which 
bear,  as  might  have  been  anticipated,  a  close  resemblance  to  those 
from  England. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  352  was  found  in  a  moss  at  Leuchland,  Brechin, 
in  Angus,  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.  Its 
length  is  26£  inches,  and  the  six  rivets  for  attaching  the  hilt  are  still  in 
the  hilt-plate,  which  is  doubly  hooked  at  the  end.  A  rib  from  the  thicker 
part  of  the  blade  is  prolonged  part  of  the  way  down  the  hilt-plate  as  in 
Fig.  344.  Another  sword,  broken  at  the  hilt,  but  still  26J  inches  long, 
was  found  on  the  same  farm.  A  find  from  Brechin  is  mentioned  further  on. 
A  sword  with  four  rivet-holes,  like  those  from  Arthur's  Seat,  found  on  the 
borders  between  England  and  Scotland,  and  engraved  by  Grose,*  has  the 
same  peculiar  end  to  the  hilt-plate,  as  has  one  with  five  rivets  from 
Methlick,  Aberdeenshire,  now  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 
Grose  has  also  engraved  two,  each  with  six  rivet-holes  in  the  wings  and 
two  or  three  in  the  hilt- plate,  found  in  Duddingston  Loch,f  near  Edin- 
burgh, as  well  as  the  hilt-plate  of  another,  found  near  Peebles,  with  slots 
in  the  wings  and  a  slot  and  rivet-hole  in  the  tang. 

Some  fragments  of  swords  from  this  loch  are  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh.  Almost  directly  above  Duddingston  Loch,  on 
Arthur's  Seat,  J  two  other  swords  were  found  during  the  construction  of  the 
Queen's  Drive.  They  are  26  J  inches  and  24 £  inches  long,  in  outline 
like  Fig.  342,  with  one  rivet-hole  in  each  wing  and  two  in  the  centre  of 
the  hilt-plate. 

Two  (23|  inches  and  20^  inches)  of  the  usual  character,  with  nine  rivets 
and  hilts  much  like  Fig.  354,  have  been  found  in  Lanarkshire.  § 

In  Gordon's  "Itinerarium  Septentrionale"  ||  a  sword  (24£  inches)  found 
near  Irvine,  Argyleshire,  is  engraved,  as  is  also  one  (26  inches)  found  in 
Graham's  Dyke  near  Carinn,  which  is  said  to  be  in  the  Advocates'  Library 
at  Edinburgh.  The  figures  do  not  seem  accurate,  but  show  seven  rivets 
in  one  and  three  in  the  other.  Gordon  makes  no  doubt  that  these  swords 
are  Roman. 

Other  specimens  have  been  found  at  Forse,^[  Latheron,  Caithness  (25 
inches),  near  the  Point  of  Sleat,**  Isle  of  Skye  (22£  inches),  with  two 
spear-heads  and  a  pin.  Another  was  found  in  Wigtonshire.ff 

In  the  Antiquarian  Museum  are  specimens  from  the  following  counties  : 
Aberdeen,  Argyle,  Ayr,  Edinburgh,  Fife,  Forfar,  Kincardine,  and 
Stirling. 

In  peat,  atlochdar,^  South  Uist,  were  found  two  swords  like  that  from 
Arthur's  Seat,  the  hilts  of  which  are  said  to  have  been  formed  of  wood. 
A  leather  sheath  is  also  reported  to  have  been  present. 

A  bronze  scabbard  tip,  such  as  will  subsequently  be  described,  was 

*  "Treatise  on  Anc.  Armour,"  pi.  Ixi.  1.  t  Op.  cit.,  pi.  Ixi.  2,  3,  4. 
%  Wilson's  "Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  352,  fig.  52. 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  210,  pi.  xx.  10,  11.  ||  PI.  li.  2,  3,  p.  118. 

IT  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  33.  **  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  102. 

tt  Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  14.          J  J  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  252. 

U 


290 


LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS 


[CHAP.  xii. 


found,  with  four  bronze  swords  (about  24  inches)  and  a  large  spear-head, 
near  Brechin,*  Forfarshire  ;  and  in  Corsbie  Moss, f  Legerwood,  Berwick,  a 
bronze  sword  and  spear-head  were  found,  the  former  having,  it  is  said,  a 
scabbard,  apparently  of  metal,  but  so  much  corroded  as  to  fall  in  pieces 
on  removal.     This  also  may  have  been  of  leather  stained  by  the  metal. 
A  sword  with  a  large  pommel  (24  inches),  closely  resembling  Fig.  353, 
was  found,  together  with  two  other  sword 
blades  (one  25  inches  with  slots),  a  scab- 
bard end,  and  two  bronze  pins,  with  large 
circular  flat  heads,  at  Tarves,J:  Aberdeen- 
shire.     Some  of  these  were  presented  to  the 
British  Museum  by  the  Earl  of  Aberdeen. 
There  is  a  recess  on  the  hilt-plate  for  the 
reception  of  the  horn  or  bone  of  the  hilt, 
which  was  fastened  by  three  rivets   still 
remaining. 

Another  sword,  the  blade  22  inches  long, 
the  handle,  including  a  round  hollow  pom- 
mel, 5^-  inches,  was  found  in  Skye,  and  is 
engraved  in  "  Pennant's  Tour."§  It  shows 
four  rivet-holes  arranged  like  those  in  the 
sword  from  Arthur's  Seat,  so  that  the  hilt 
was  probably  formed  as  usual  of  horn  or 
wood  and  not  of  bronze. 

A  few  other  swords  with  pommels  to 
their  hilts  have  been  found  in  Scotland. 
That  shown  in  Fig.  353  was  found  in 
Edinburgh, ||  with,  it  is  said,  thirteen  or 
fourteen  more,  a  pin,  and  ring,  and  a 
kind  of  annular  button,  of  bronze.  It 
is  now  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at 
Edinburgh.  The  hilt  appears  to  have 
been  added  to  the  hilt-plate  by  a  sub- 
sequent process  of  casting.  The  pom- 
mel has  been  cast  over  a  core  of  clay, 
which  it  still  retains  within  it.  An- 
other of  the  swords  (241  inches)  has 
the  hilt-plate  pierced  for  six  rivets. 
Two  others  which  have  been  examined 
are  imperfect. 

Mr.  Joseph  Anderson,  who  has  de- 
scribed this  find,  points  out  that  this  hilt  must  have  "  been  cast  in 
a  matrix  modelled  from  a  sword  which  had  the  grip  made  up  of 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  pp.  181,  224 :  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  203. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  121.  %  "Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  4,  p.  161. 

§  Vol.  ii.  p.  334,  pi.  xliv.  ||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  321. 


Fig.  353.— Edinburgh. 


FOUND    IN   IRELAND.  291 

two  convex  plates  attached  on  either  side  of  the  handle  plate,  and 
their  ends  covered  by  a  hollow  pommel" — in  fact,  from  such  a  sword 
as  that  from  Tarves,  already  mentioned.  He  also  observes  that  the 
holes  in  the  hilt  are  not  rivet- holes,  and  thinks  that  they  may  have 
been  caused  by  wooden  pins  used  to  hold  the  clay  core  in  position, 
for  the  handle  as  well  as  the  pommel  is  hollow.  I  am  rather 
doubtful  as  to  the  accuracy  of  this  theory,  as  such  pins  would, 
I  think,  produce  blow-holes  in  the  metal  in  casting.  There  may, 
however,  have  been  clay  projections  from  the  inner  core  which 
would  leave  holes  such  as  these,  into  which  studs  of  wood,  bone, 
or  horn  might  afterwards  be  inserted  by  way  of  ornament  and  to 
add  firmness  to  the  grip.  For  details  of  the  finding  of  from 
thirty  to  forty  bronze  swords  in  Scotland,  the  reader  is  referred 
to  Mr.  Anderson's  paper. 

The  bronze  leaf-shaped  swords  from  Ireland,  of  which  nearly  or 
quite  a  hundred,  either  perfect  or  fragmentary,  are  preserved  in 
the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  have  been  treated  of  at 
some  length  by  the  late  Sir  William  Wilde,'''"  whose  Catalogue 
the  reader  may  consult  with  advantage.  In  general  appearance 
they  closely  resemble  the  swords  from  the  sister  countries,  and  vary 
in  length  from  about  eighteen  to  thirty  inches.  The  blades  are 
usually  rounded  on  the  faces,  or  have  a  faintly  marked  median 
ridge,  and  are  slightly  fluted  along  the  edges.  This  fluting  or 
bevelling  is  sometimes  bounded  by  a  raised  ridge.  The  form 
with  a  rounded  rib  along  the  middle  of  the  blade  is  almost  un- 
known. There  is  considerable  variation  in  the  form  of  the  end 
of  the  hilt-plate,  in  which  occasionally  there  is  a  deep  V-shaped 
notch,  or  several  smaller  notches.  The  most  common  termination 
is  that  like  a  fish-tail  as  seen  in  Fig.  354.  The  number  of  rivet-holes 
is  various,  ranging  from  four  to  eleven.  There  are  occasionally 
slots  t  in  the  hilt-plate  and  in  the  wings  at  the  base  of  the  blade. 

They  have  been  found  in  most  parts  of  the  kingdom. 

A  common  type  of  Irish  sword  is  shown  in  Fig.  354  from  a  speci- 
men found  at  Newtown  Limavady,  Co.  Deny,  in  1870.  One 
wing  of  the  fish-tail  termination  is  wanting  and  has  been  restored 
in  the  sketch.  The  nine  rivet-holes  seem  to  have  been  cast 
and  not  drilled,  though  they  may  have  been  slightly  counter-sunk 
subsequently  to  the  casting.  The  hilt-plate  is  slightly  fluted,  per- 
haps with  the  view  of  steadying  the  hilt.  In  a  fragment  of  a 
sword  found  with  spear-heads,  a  socketed  dagger,  and  a  fragment 

*  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  439.  f  Op.  tit.,  p.  454. 

U  2 


292  LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS  [CHAP.  XII. 

of  a  hammer  on  Bo  Island,  Enniskillen,  there  are  five  deep  flutings 


Fig.  354.— New- 
town  Limavady.    4 


Fig.  355.— Ireland.    J 


i.— Ireland.    J 


Fig.  357.— Ireland.  | 


FOUND   IN    IRELAND   AND   FRANCE.  293 

on  each  side  of  the  hilt-plate.  As  is  the  case  with  some  of 
the  English  examples  already  mentioned,  this  hilt-plate  has  been 
joined  to  the  blade  by  some  process  of  burning  on.  One  of  the 
four  rivet-holes  in  it  has  been  partially  closed  by  the  operation. 
Sir  William  Wilde  has  noticed  that  several  of  the  leaf-shaped 
swords  under  his  charge  had  been  broken  and  subsequently 
"  welded  "  both  by  fusion  and  by  the  addition  of  a  collar  of  the 
metal  which  encircles  the  extremities  of  the  fragments.  The  term 
"  welding  "  is,  however,  inappropriate  to  a  metal  of  the  character 
of  bronze. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  a  sword  of  this  type  with  nine  rivet-holes 
(25  £  inches),  found  near  Aghadoe,*  Co.  Kerry. 

In  the  small  Irish  blade  of  much  the  same  type  (Fig.  355)  there  are  only 
three  rivet-holes,  which  have  been  cast  in  the  blade,  a  fourth  having  from 
some  cause  been  filled  up  with  the  metal,  though  a  depression  on  each 
face  marks  the  spot  where  the  hole  was  intended  to  be. 

There  were  several  swords,  mostly  broken,  in  the  great  Dowris  hoard. 
They  had  a  rivet-hole  in  each  wing  and  two  or  three  in  the  hilt-plate. 

Some  of  the  bronze  swords  found  in  Ireland  attracted  the  attention  of 
antiquaries  upwards  of  a  century  ago.  Governor  Pownall  described  two 
found  in  a  bog  at  Cullen,  Tipperary,  which  are  engraved  in  faQArchaologia.] 
They  are  26^  inches  and  27  inches  long,  and  one  of  them  is  of  the  same 
form  as  the  Scotch  sword,  Fig.  352.  Yallancey];  has  also  figured  one 
(22  inches)  with  eight  rivets. 

From  among  those  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy  I  have 
selected  two  for  engraving.  The  first,  Fig.  356  (26J  inches),  has  had  its 
hilt  attached  by  a  number  of  very  small  pins  instead  of  rivets  of  the  usual 
size.  The  second,  Fig.  357,  is  a  short  blade  about  19£  inches  long,  with 
a  central  rib  extending  down  the  hilt-plate,  in  which  there  are  four  rivet- 
holes,  two  on  each  side. 

A  bronze  sword  from  Polignac,  Haute  Loire,  now  in  the  Museum  at 
Le  Puy,  Haute  Loire,  has  its  hilt-plate  like  that  of  Fig.  356,  but  has  only 
four  rivets.  Another  with  seven  rivets  was  found  in  a  dolmen  at  Miers,  § 
Lot.  Another  with  six  rivets  from  the  Department  of  Jura  ||  is  in  the 
museum  at  St.  Germain. 

Another  from  near  Besangon,^]"  Doubs,  has  six  small  rivets.  One  found 
at  Alise  Ste.  Keine,**  Cote  d'Or,  has  four  rivets  only. 

The  type  also  occurred  at  Hallstatt,tf  and  in  Germany 4 1 

At  least  two  swords  have  been  found  in  Ireland  still  retaining  the 
plates  of  bone  which  formed  their  hilts.  By  the  kindness  of  Mr. 
Robert  Day,  F.S.A.,  I  am  able  to  reproduce  full-sized  figures  of 

*  "Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  ix.  7,  p.  162.  t  Vol.  iii.  p.  355,  pi.  xix. 

t  Vol.  iv.  pi.  vii.  1,  p.  50. 

§  De  Bonstetten,  "  Essai  sur  les  Dolm.,"  1865,  pi.  ii.  2;  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xiii. 
p.  183,  pi.  v.  D. 

||  Chantre,  "  Alb.,"  pi.  xvi.  1.  t  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 

**  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  pi.  xiii.  23.  tt  Von  Sacken,  Taf.  v.  2. 

H  Lindenschmit,  «  A.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  i.  Heft  iii.  Taf.  iii.  6. 


294  LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS  [CHAP.  XII. 

both  sides  of  one  of  the  most  perfect  specimens,  as  Figs.  358  and 


Tig.  358.— Muckno.        }  Fig.  359.— Muckno.        } 

359,  which  have  already  appeared  in  the    Journal  of  the  Royal 


WITH    HILTS    OF    BONE.  2JJ5 

Historical  and  Archaeological  Association  of  Ireland*    The  sword 


Fig.  360.— Muckno. 


Fig.  361.— Mullylagan. 


Fig.  362.— Mully- 
lagan    -J 


itself,  shown  on  a  small  scale  in  Fig.  300,  was  found  in  Lisletrim 

*  3rd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  23  ;  2nd  S    vol.  vi.  p.  72  ;  "  Reliquary,"  vol.  x.  p.  65 


296  LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS.  [cHAP.  XII. 

Bog,  Muckno,  Co.  Monaghan.  It  is  241  inches  long,  with,  a  thick 
midrib  running  along  the  blade.  The  plates  of  bone  which  are 
still  attached  have  been  pronounced  by  Professor  Owen  to  be 
mammalian,  and  probably  cetacean.  It  will  be  observed  that  at 
the  wings  of  the  hilt-plate  the  bone  projects  somewhat  beyond  the 
metal.  The  same  peculiarity  may  be  observed  in  the  bone  hilt 
of  a  sword  found  at  Mullylagan,*  Co.  Armagh,  which  has  some- 
what the  appearance  of  having  been  carved  at  the  end  next  the 
blade  into  a  pair  of  rude  volutes.  It  is  shown  full-size  in 
Fig.  361.  The  sword  itself,  on  a  small  scale,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  362.  In  this  instance  the  bone  projects  beyond  the  sides 
of  the  hilt-plate.  I  have  not  seen  the  specimen,  which  is  pre- 
served in  the  collection  of  Mr.  A.  Knight  Young,  of  Monaghan.  t 
A  bronze  sword  with  six  rivets,  found  near  Kallundborg,  Denmark,  + 
had  the  hilt  formed  of  wood. 

As  is  the  case  with  several  of  the  bronze  swords  discovered  in 
Scandinavia,  some  of  those  found  in  Ireland  seem 
to  have  been  decorated  with  gold  upon  their  hilts. 

On  one  of  the  rivets  of  a  sword  found  in  a  bog 
near  Cullen,§  Tipperary,  was  a  thin  piece  of  gold 
weighing  upwards  of  12  dwts.  Another  sword,  1 1 
found  near  the  same  place  in  1751,  had  a  plate  of 
gold  on  one  side  which  covered  the  hilt ;  at  the  end 
was  a  small  object  like  a  pommel  of  a  sword,  with 
three  links  of  a  chain  hanging  from  it.  The  whole 
weighed  3  ozs.  3  dwts.  1 1  grs.  In  this  bog  about  twenty  bronze 
swords  were  found  at  intervals,  besides  about  forty  pieces  of  hilt- 
plates  in  which  the  rivets  stood.  In  one  swordll  there  was  a  recess 
near  the  blade,  ^X^-X^  inch,  in  which  was  "a  piece  of  pewter 
which  just  fitted  it,  with  four  channels  cut  in;it,  in  each  of  which 
was  laid  a  thin  bit  of  fine  copper,  so  that  they  resembled  four 
figures  of  1." 

A  fragment  of  a  blade  which  Wilde  **  considers  to  be  that  of  a 
sword,  is  decorated  with  raised  lines  and  circles  in  relief,  wrhich 
were  cast  with  the  blade.  A  portion  of  it  is  shown  in  Fig.  363. 
As  the  whole  fragment  is  only  4|  inches  long,  it  may  have  formed 
part  of  a  socketed  knife  or  some  other  instrument,  and  not  of  a 

*  Jour.  Royal  Hist.  $  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  257-  I  am  indebted 
to  the  Council  for  the  use  of  the  cuts. 

t  Op.  tit.,  4th  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  505.  J  "  Aarboger  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  1871,  p.  15. 

$  Arch.,  vol.  iii.  p.  363.  ||  Ib.,  p.  364.  f  Ib.,  p.  365. 

*»  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  446,  fig.  322,  here  by  permission  reproduced. 


CONTINENTAL    TYPES.  297 

SAVord.  A  part  of  a  spear-head,  with  a  series  of  ring  ornaments 
engraved  on  the  blade,  was  in  the  hoard  found  at  Haynes  Hill, 
Kent.* 

There  is  considerable  general  resemblance  between  the  bronze 
swords  found  in  the  British  Islands  and  those  of  the  continental 
countries  of  Europe.  The  similarities  with  those  from  France 
have  already  been  pointed  out.  Several  with  ornamented  hilts 
have  been  figured  by  Chantref  and  others.  One  has  a  hemi- 
spherical pommel  and  a  varied  design  on  the  hilt. 

The  bronze  swords  from  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings  J  have  fre- 
quently bronze  hilts,  like  those  of  the  swords  from  the  South  of 
France.  In  some  instances  the  hilt-plate  has  side  flanges,  with  a 
central  slot  or  line  of  rivets,  and  rivets  in  the  wings.  In  others 
the  broad  tang  forming  the  hilt  has  two  or  three  rivet-holes.  In 
some  hilts  cast  in  bronze  there  is  a  recess  for  receiving  a  piece  of 
horn  or  wood.  The  blades  have  frequently  delicate  raised  ribs, 
sometimes  six  on  each  face,  running  along  them. 

The  bronze  swords  of  Italy  §  present  several  varieties  not  found 
in  Britain.  The  sides  of  the  blades  are  more  nearly  parallel,  and 
many  have  a  slender  tang  at  the  hilt,  sometimes  with  two  rivet-holes 
forming  loops  at  the  side  of  the  tang,  sometimes  with  one  rivet- 
hole  in  its  centre.  In  some  the  blade  narrows  somewhat  for  the 
tang,  in  each  side  of  which  are  two  semicircular  notches  for  the 
rivets.  In  some  Italian  and  French  swords  the  blade  is  drawn  out 
to  a  long  tapering  point,  so  that  its  edges  present  a  somewhat 
ogival  curve. 

A  fragment  of  a  very  remarkable  Greek  sword  from  Thera  II  has 
a  series  of  small  broad-edged  axes  of  gold,  in  shape  like  conven- 
tional battle-axes,  inlaid  along  the  middle  of  the  blade  between 
two  slightly  projecting  ribs. 

The  double-edged  bronze  swords  found  by  Dr.  Schliemann^f  at 
MycenaB  are  tanged  and  often  provided  with  pommels  made  of 
alabaster.  The  hilts  and  scabbards  are  in  some  cases  decorated 
with  gold.  The  blades  are  usually  long  and  narrow,  though  some 
widen  considerably  at  the  hilt-end,  so  as  to  form  a  broad  shoulder 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  282. 

t  " Agedu Br.,"  lere  ptie.  p.  105  et  seq. ;  Alb., pi.  xv.  bis,  2;  De  Ferry, "  Macon  preh.," 
pi.  xxxix. 

J  Keller,  passim. 

§  See  Gastaldi,  "  Iconografia,"  1869,  Tav.  viii.  ;  Pellegrini,  "  Sepolchreto  Preromano," 
1878,  Tav.  iii.,  iv.  Gozzadini,  "  Mors  de  Cheval  et  1'Epee  de  Rorzano,"  1875. 

i"  Aarbog.  f.  Nord.  Oldk.,"  1879,  pi.  i. 
"Mycenae  und  Tiryns,"  1878,  pp.  281,  303,  &c. 


298  LEAF-SHAPED    SWORDS.  [CHAP.  XII. 

to  the  tang.  Swords  appear  to  have  been  much  rarer  on  the  pre- 
sumed site  of  Troy. 

There  appear  to  be  doubts  whether  the  beautiful  bronze  sword 
in  the  Berlin  Museum,*  reported  to  have  been  found  at  Pella,  in 
Macedonia,  does  not  belong  to  the  valley  of  the  Rhine. 

Bronze  swords  have  but  rarely  been  found  in  Egypt.  In  my  own 
collection,  however,  is  one  which  was  found  at  Great  Kantara  during 
the  construction  of  the  Suez  Canal.  The  blade,  about  1 7  inches 
long,  is  leaf-shaped,  and  much  like  that  of  Fig.  360,  but  more 
uniform  in  width.  Instead  of  having  a  hilt-plate  it  is  drawn  down 
to  a  small  tang  about  ~6  inch  square.  This  again  expands  into 
an  octagonal  bar,  about  i  inch  in  diameter,  which  has  been  drawn 
down  to  a  point,  and  then  turned  back  to  form  a  hook,  probably 
for  suspending  the  sword  at  the  belt.  At  the  base  of  the  blade 
are  two  rivet-holes.  The  hilt  must  have  been  formed  of  two 
pieces  which  clasped  the  tang.  The  total  length  of  the  sword 
from  the  point  to  the  top  of  the  hook  is  22|  inches.  I  have 
never  seen  another  similar  example,  but  a  bronze  sword  blade, 
presumably  from  Lower  Egypt,  is  in  the  museum  at  Berlin.  It  has 
an  engraved  line  down  each  side  of  the  blade,  and  its  sides  are 
more  parallel  than  in  mine  from  Kantara,  already  mentioned. 
The  hilt  is  broken  off.  A  German  sword  from  the  Magdeburg 
district,  with  a  tang  and  two  rivet-holes  at  the  base  of  the  blade, 
closely  resembles  mine  from  Egypt,  except  that  it  has  no  hook  to 
the  tang. 

The  bronze  swords  found  in  Denmark  t  and  Northern  Germany  J 
have  often  side  flanges  to  the  hilt-plate,  like  Fig.  348,  occasion- 
ally plated  with  gold ;  but  the  blades  are  generally  more  uniform 
in  width,  and  have  the  edges  straighter  than  those  from  the  United 
Kingdom.  Some  blades  have  a  simple  tang.  On  a  very  large 
proportion  the  hilt  formed  of  bronze  (or  of  some  more  perishable 
material  alternating  with  bronze  plates)  has  been  preserved.  The 
pommels  are  usually  formed  of  oval  or  rhomboidal  plates  with  a 
central  boss,  and  are  generally  ornamented  below. 

Some  of  the  swords  found  in  Sweden  and  Denmark  have  been 
regarded  by  Dr.  Montelius  §  and  Mr.  Worsaae  ||  as  of  foreign 
origin. 

*  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "Die  Bronze  Schwerter  des  K.  Mus.  zu  Berlin,"  1878,  p.  56. 
t  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.   B,  ii.,  iii.,  iv. ;    "Worsaae,   "  Nord.   Olds.,"  figs.    114 
to  137. 

j  Lisch,  "  Freder.  Francisc.,"  Tab.  xiv.,  xv. 

i  "Cong,  preh.,"  Stockholm  vol.  i.  p.  506.     ||  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Buda  Pest  vol.,  p. 238. 


EARLY   IRON    SWORDS.  299 

A  bronze  sword  from  Finland  with  a  flanged  hilt-plate  and 
eight  rivet-holes  has  been  *  figured. 

In  Germany  t  the  bronze  swords  present  types  which  more 
nearly  resemble  those  of  France  and  Denmark  than  those  of  the 
British  Isles.  Those  with  a  flanged  hilt-plate  are  found,  however, 
both  in  Northern  and  Southern  Germany,  as  well  as  in  Italy,  Austria 
and  Hungary.  Others  have  long  and  narrow  tangs,  but  a  large 
proportion  are  provided  with  bronze  hilts,  usually  with  disc-like 
pommels.  These  hilts  conceal  the  form  of  the  tangs.  Some  few  have 
spirals  at  the  end  of  the  hilt,  as  already  mentioned,  and  one  from 
Brandenburg,  in  the  Berlin  Museum,  has  a  spheroidal  pommel.  In 
some  of  the  bronze  hilts  there  are  recesses  for  the  reception  of 
pieces  of  horn  or  wood,  as  on  some  of  the  French  and  Swiss  swords. 

Iron  swords  of  the  same  general  character  as  those  of  bronze 
have  been  found  in  the  ancient  cemetery  at  Hallstatt  and  else- 
where. Those  from  Hallstatt  +  are  identical  in  character  with  the 
bronze  swords  from  the  same  locality.  In  one  instance  the  hilt 
and  pommel  of  an  iron  sword  are  in  bronze  ;  in  another  the 
pommel  alone  ;  the  hilt-plate  of  iron  being  flat,  and  provided  with 
rivets  exactly  like  those  of  the  bronze  swords.  In  others  the 
pommel  is  wanting.  I  have  a  broken  iron  sword  from  this 
cemetery,  with  the  hilt-plate  perfect,  and  having  three  bronze  rivets 
still  in  it,  and  the  holes  for  two  others  at  the  pommel  end.  The 
blade  has  a  central  rounded  rib  along  it  like  Fig.  345,  but  with  a 
small  bead  on  either  side.  I  have  a  beautiful  bronze  sword  from  the 
same  locality,  on  the  blade  of  which  are  two  small  raised  beads  on 
either  side  of  the  central  rib,  and  in  the  spaces  between  them  a 
threefold  wavy  line  punched  in  or  engraved.  In  this  instance  a 
tang  has  passed  through  the  hilt,  that  was  formed  of  alternate 
blocks  of  bronze  and  of  some  substance  that  has  now  perished, 
possibly  ivory.  A  magnificent  iron  sword  from  Hallstatt,  now  in 
the  Vienna  Museum,  has  the  hilt  and  pommel  formed  of  ivory 
inlaid  with  amber. 

The  late  Celtic  iron  swords  found  in  Britain  have  been  described 

by  Mr.   A.    W.    Franks,    F.R.S.,  in    an   exhaustive    paper  in  the 

Archaiologia,§  in  which  also  the  reader  will  find  many  interesting 

particulars  of  analogous  swords  found  in  continental  countries. 

Several  iron  swords  have  been  found  in  France  with  flat  hilt- 

*  "Cong,  preh.,"  Copenhagen  vol.,  p.  449. 

t  See  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "  Die  Bronze  Schwerter  des  K.  Mus.  zu  Berlin,"  1878. 
J  Von   Sacken,  "  Grabf.   v.  Hallst.,"  Taf.   v. ;  Lindenschmit,  "Alt.   u.    h.   Vorz.," 
vol.  ii.  Heft  i.  Taf.  v.  j  Vol.  xlv.  p.  251. 


300  LEAF-SHAPED   SWORDS.  [CHAP.  XII. 

plates  and  rivets  exactly  of  the  same  character  as  those  of  the 
bronze  swords.  Nine  have  been  discovered  in  tumuli  at  Cosne, 
Magny  Lambert,  and  elsewhere  in  the  department  of  Cote  d'Or. 
Others  have  been  found  at  Cormoz,  Ain ;  and  at  Ge'dinne,  in 
Belgium.  There  can  be  but  little  doubt  that  M.  Alexandre  Bertrand* 
is  right  in  assigning  the  French  examples  to  the  fourth  or  fifth 
century  B.C.,  and  in  regarding  them  as  direct  descendants  from 
the  bronze  swords  of  ordinary  type.  He  adduces,  also,  the  remark- 
able fragment  of  an  iron  sword  with  a  bronze  hilt  found  in  the 
Lac  de  Bienne,  which  is  in  exact  imitation  of  a  bronze  sword  with 
ribs  on  the  blade,  as  an  additional  proof  that  these  early  iron 
swords  are  the  reproductions,  pure  and  simple,  of  those  in  bronze, 
and  fabricated  from  the  metal  then  recently  introduced  into  the 
"West.  How  far  back  in  time  the  use  of  bronze  swords  in  Gaul 
may  have  extended  it  is  difficult  to  say,  but  the  varieties  in  their 
types  testify  to  a  lengthened  use  before  they  began  to  be  super- 
seded by  those  of  iron. 

I  must,  however,  now  describe  the  sheaths  by  which  these 
blades  were  protected. 

*  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  321. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

SCABBARDS   AND   CHAPES. 

ALTHOUGH  the  sheaths  which  protected  the  daggers  and  swords 
described  in  the  preceding  chapters  consisted  probably  for  the 
most  part  of  wood  or  leather,  yet  in  many  instances  some  portion 
of  the  scabbard  and  its  fittings  was  made  of  bronze ;  and  to  the 
description  of  these  objects  it  seems  desirable  to  devote  a  separate 
chapter.  It  is  rarely  that  the  metallic  portions  of  the  sheaths 
have  been  found  in  company  with  the  blades  ;  but  in  one  instance 
at  least  a  portion  of  a  sword  blade  has  been  discovered  within  a 
surrounding  sheath  of  bronze  ;  which,  however,  does  not  extend 
the  full  length  of  the  blade,  the  upper  part  of  the  scabbard  having 
probably  been  formed  of  wood.  This  discovery  proves  that  the 
short  bronze  sheaths,  which  are  usually  from  8  to  12  inches  long, 
belonged  to  swords,  and  not,  as  at  first  sight  might  be  inferred 
from  their  size,  to  daggers. 

In  France  some  much  longer  bronze  sheaths  have  been  found 
with  the  swords  still  in  them.  The  most  noteworthy  is  that  from 
the  neighbourhood  of  Uze's,*  Gard,  now  in  the  Musee  d'Artillerie, 
at  Paris,  which  is  decorated  with  transverse  beaded  lines  alter- 
nating with  ornaments  of  concentric  rings.  This  scabbard  is  longer 
by  some  inches  than  the  blade  it  contains.  In  fact,  in  no  instance 
does  the  point  of  the  sword  appear  to  have  reached  so  far  as  the 
end  of  the  sheath.  Another  sheath  found  at  Cormoz  (Ain)  t  is  in 
the  museum  at  Lyons. 

In  a  few  instances  the  wooden  sheaths  of  bronze  swords  have 
been  found  entire.  The  finest  is  that  from  the  Kongshoi,+  Yam- 
drup,  Ribe,  Denmark.  It  was  found  with  a  body  in  a  tree-coffin 

*"Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  viii.  7;  Chantre,  "Agedu  Br.,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  108;  Linden- 
schmit,  "  A.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  ii.  Heft  i.  Taf.  3. 

t  Chantre,  op.  cit.,  p.  135. 

J  Madsen,  "  Afb.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  vii. ;  Lindenschmit,  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  ii.  Heft  i. 
Taf.  iii.  1. 


302 


SCABBARDS    AND    CHAPES. 


[CHAP.  xin. 


of  oak.  This  sheath  is  about  a  fifth  longer  than  the  blade  of  the 
sword,  and  is  carved  on  both  faces,  though  more  highly 
decorated  on  what  must  have  been  the  outer  face,  than 
on  the  inner.  There  is  no  metal  mounting  at  either 
end.  Another  scabbard  found  in  the  Treenhoi*  is 
likewise  of  wood.  Its  chape  also  is  formed  of  some 
hard  wood.  It  has  been  lined  with  skin,  the  hair  to- 
wards the  blade  of  the  sword.  This  sheath  is  about 
an  eighth  longer  than  the  blade  of  the  sword. 

No  doubt  many  of  the  British  sheaths  were  made 
of  wood  alone.  Others,  though  partly  made  of  that 
material,  were  tipped  with  bronze,  the  metal  being 
secured  to  the  wood,  or  the  leather,  if  that  material 
was  used,  by  a  small  rivet  which  passed  diagonally 
through  the  metal.  As  Mr.  Franks  t  has  pointed  out, 
the  presence  of  this  rivet-hole  would  have  been  suffi- 
cient to  show  that  these  objects  are  not  dagger  sheaths, 
as  some  have  thought,  for  the  rivet  leaves  too  small  a 
part  of  the  bronze  receptacle  available  for  a  blade  even 
as  long  as  that  of  an  ordinary  dagger.  The  discovery 
already  mentioned  places  this  question  beyond  doubt. 
The  bronze  sheaths  of  the  iron  swords  and  daggers 
of  the  Late  Celtic  Period  are  of  a  different  character 
from  those  I  am  about  to  describe,  and  are  made  of 
sheet  bronze,  and  not  cast  in  a  single  piece. 

In  Fig.  364  is  shown  a  portion  of  a  sword  blade,  with 
the  scabbard  end  still  in  position,  which  was  found  in  the 
Thames  near  Isleworth,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
T.  Layton,  F.S.A.J  This  scabbard  end  has  a  central  rib 
and  two  other  slight  ribs  along  each  margin  in  order  to  give 
it  strength,  and,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  figure,  probably 
extends  at  least  6  inches  beyond  the  end  of  the  sword,  thus 
giving  an  opportunity  of  securing  the  metal  end  to  the 
wooden  or  leather  scabbard  at  a  place  where  the  blade  would 
not  interfere  with  the  passage  of  a  pin  or  rivet. 

A  scabbard  end  of  much  the  same  form  (13^-  inches) 
is  shown  in  Fig.  365.  It  was  found  with  fifteen  others,  some 
broken,  near  Guilsfield,  §  Montgomeryshire,  together  with 
looped  palstaves,  spear-heads,  &c.  It  has  a  small  rivet-hole 
about  half-way  along  it.  Another,  ||  somewhat  straighter 

*  Madsen,  op.  cit.,  pi.  v. 

t  "  Horae  Ferales,"  p.  159.     See  also  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  301,  fig.  3. 

%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  404. 

$  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.   ii.  p.  251;    Arch.    Catnb.,    3rd   S.,  vol.  x.  p.    214; 

Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 

[I  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  259,  whence  this  cut  is  taken,  by  permission  of  Mr.  Franks. 


Fig  364 
Meworth. 


ENDS    OF    SWORD-SHEATHS. 


303 


(12£  inches),  found  with  a  bronze  buckler  in  the  Eiver  Isis  near  Dor- 
chester, Oxon,*  is  shown  in  Fig.  366.  It  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
There  is  a  small  rivet-hole  passing  transversely  through  it.  Several  f 
other  sheath  ends  of  the  same  kind  are  preserved  in  the  same  collection. 
One,  imperfect,  from  the  Thames  atTeddington  (10  inches),  with  ribs  along 
the  middle  and  edges,  has  a  hole  for  a  diagonal  rivet,  and  retains  a  frag- 
ment of  wood  inside,  as  does  also  another  from  the  Thames  at  London, 
which  has  a  very  slightly  projecting  midrib.  A  third,  of  the  same 


Fig.  365.— Guilsfield.    J 


Fi{?.  366.— River  Isis, 
near  Dorchester.       J 


character  (lOf  inches),  from  the  Thames  at  Chelsea,  has  a  small  end  plate 
secured  by  a  central  rivet.  This  has  traces  of  either  leather  or  wood 
inside. I  In  another,  also  from  the  Thames  (7f  inches),  the  end  plate  has 
been  cast  with  the  sheath,  and  there  is  a  wooden  lining  secured  by  a 
diagonal  rivet.  The  opening  is  nearly  flat. 

In  some  there  is  no  rib  down  the  middle,  but  merely  a  projecting  ridge, 
and  in  others  no  rivet-holes  are  visible. 

This  straight  form  of  scabbard  end  has  been  very  rarely  found  in 
Ireland.  The  only  specimen  mentioned  by  Wilde  is  by  permission  here 
reproduced  as  Fig.  367.  Another  (5£  inches)  was  in  the  collection  of 
Mr.  Wakeman,  of  Enniskillen. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  iii.  p.  118  ;  Arch.,  vol.  xxvii.  p.  298. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  201.  See  "  Horae  Ferales,"  pi.  ix.  No.  10  to  14,  and  C. 
R.  Smith,  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  72. 

I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  118. 


304 


SCABBARDS    AND    CHAPES. 


[CHAP.  xiii. 


A  scabbard  end  of  much  the  same  general  character  as  that  from 
Guilsfield,  but  shorter  and  broader,  is  shown  in  Fig.  368.  It  was  found 
at  Wick  Park,  Stogursey,  Somerset,*  with  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  gouges, 
spear-heads,  and  fragments  of  swords,  together  with  jets  from  castings 
and  rough  metal. 

Scabbard  ends  occur  also  in  Scotland,  for  one  nearly  similar  to  these  last 
(5f  inches)  was  found  with  four  leaf-shaped  swords  and  a  large  spear- 
head, all  of  bronze,  at  Cauldhame,  near  Brechin,  Forf arshire.  f  They 
are  now  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh.  The  scabbard  is  by 
permission  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland  here  shown  as  Fig. 
369.  Another  scabbard  tip  in  the  same  museum  is  rather  shorter.  It 
was  found  at  Gogar  Burn,  near  Edinburgh,  together  with  a  sword  and  a 


Fig.  368.— Stogursey,  Somerset.  \      Fig.  369.— Brechin 


Fig.  370. — Pant-y-maen. 


penannular  brooch  of  bronze  and  a  small  penannular  ornament  of  gold. 
A  Scotch  specimen  from  the  farm  of  Ythsie,  Tarves,  Aberdeenshire,  is 
in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  like  that  from  Brechin,  and  is  5£  inches 
long. 

The  straight  form  of  scabbard  end  has  been  discovered,  though  rarely,  in 
Northern  France.  One  from  Caix,  Somme,  is  engraved  in  the  Dictionnaire 
Archeologique  de  la  Gaule.  A  fragment  of  another,  more  like  Fig.  365, 
has  been  found  near  Compiegne  (Oise). 

A  still  shorter  form  is  shown  in  Fig.  370,  the  original  of  which  was 
found  at  Pant-y-maen,  near  Glancych,  Cardiganshire,  J  together  with 
broken  swords,  spear-heads,  and  ferrules,  as  well  as  some  small  rings. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  8.,  vol.  v.  p.  427. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  181 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  203 ;  "  Catal.  Mus. 
Arch.  Inst.  Ed.,"  p.  24. 

I  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  221,  whence  the  figure  is  copied. 


CHAPES    FROM    ENGLAND    AND   IRELAND.  305 

A  still  more  simple  form,  and  one  more  nearly  approaching  the  modern 
chape,  has  occasionally  been  found.  That  shown  as  Fig.  371  formed  part 
of  the  hoard  found  in  Eeach  Fen,  Cambridgeshire,  which  comprised  also 
some  fragments  of  swords.  It  is  of  especial  interest,  as  the  small  bronze 
nail  which  served  to  fasten  it  to  the  wooden  scabbard  was  found  with  it 
This  nail  is  shown  above  the  chape  in  the  figure. 


Fig.  371.-Reach  Fen. 


Another  chape  of  the  same  kind,  but  more  like  Fig.  372  in  form,  was 
found  at  Haines  Hill,  near  Hythe,  Kent,*  with  a  perforated  disc  of  bronze, 
like  Fig.  503,  and  some  other  objects. 

Fig.  372,  kindly  lent  by  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  shows  a  chape  found 
at  Cloonmore,  near  Templemore,  Co.  Tipperary.f  This  form  seems  to  be 
of  very  rare  occurrence  in  Ireland. 

It  has,  however,  been  found  in  Savoy,  J  and  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings. 


Fig.  372.— Cloonmore.        {  Fig.  373.— Stoke  Ferry. 


An  English  form,  which  is,  I  believe,  as  yet  unique,  is  shown  in  Fig  • 
373.  It  was  found,  with  several  broken  swords  and  spear-heads,  at 
Stoke  Ferry,  Norfolk.  It  is  ornamented  with  a  neat  fluting,  produced 
apparently  by  means  of  punches.  The  rivet-holes  are  at  the  sides,  instead 
of  oeing,  as  usual,  on  the  face. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  280.       t  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  461,  fig.  336. 

J  "  Exp.  Arch,  de  la  Sav.,"  1878,  pi.  xii.  354,  356. 

X 


SCABBARDS    AXD    CHAPES. 


[CHAP.  xiii. 


A  curious  socketed  object  in  bronze,  found  near  Piltown,*  in  the 
barony  of  Iverk,  Co.  Kilkenny,  has  been  regarded  as  the  haft  of  a 
dagger.  It  is  rectangular  in  section  and  expanding  at  the  base  which 
is  closed.  But  from  its  analogy  with  some  of  the  scabbard  ends  lately 
described  it  seems  possible  that  it  formed  part  of  a  sheath.  The 
objection  to  this  view  is  that  the  breadth  of  the  socket  is  much  greater 
than  usual  with  these  chapes.  The  zig-zag  and  other  ornamentation  upon 
it  is  described  as  having  been  engraved  with  a  fine  point  after  the  object 
was  cast.  The  lower  face  is  not  ornamented. 

The  form  is  not  unlike  that  of  the  end  of  the  scabbard  of  some  modern 
African  leaf-shaped  swords  of  iron,  as  to  which  Mr.  Syer  Cumingf  has 
remarked,  that  while  the  point  of  the  blade  is  as  sharp  as  a  needle,  the 
base  of  its  receptacle  measures  nearly  3  inches  across.  It  is  possible  that 


Fig.  374.— Keelogue  Ford,  Ireland. 


the  object  engraved  as  Fig.  286  may  be  intended  for  the  end  of  a  scabbard, 
and  not  for  that  of  a  hilt,  but  this  can  only  be  determined  by  future  dis- 
coveries. 

Another  Irish  form  is  shown  in  Fig.  374,  the  original  of  which  was 
found  at  Keelogue  Ford,  in  the  Shannon,  and  is  in  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy.  In  this  instance  the  chape  has  assumed  a  kind  of  boat -like 
form  with  pointed  ends.  As  Sir  W.  Wilde]:  has  observed,  the  indenta- 
tions at  the  top  mark  the  overlapping  of  the  wooden  portion  of  the 
scabbard,  which  was  fastened  to  the  bronze  by  two  slender  rivets,  so  that 
the  ends  projected  about  an  inch  on  each  side. 

Fig.  375  shows  an  English  scabbard  tip  of  the  same  class,  though 
differing  in  details,  which  was  found  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Mildenhall, 
Suffolk,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  Simeon  Fenton,  of  that  town,  to 
whom  I  am  indebted  for  permission  to  engrave  it.  The  surface  of  this 
chape  is  beautifully  finished,  and  the  raised  rib  round  the  semi-circular 
notch  is  delicately  engrailed  or  "milled."  There  is  a  single  minute 
hole  for  a  pin  or  rivet  on  one  face  only.  As  will  be  seen,  this  English 
example  closely  resembles  that  from  Ireland  shown  in  the  previous 
figure. 

Such   projections  as  those  on  the  chapes  of  this  form  would 
appear  to  be  inconvenient ;  but  in  another  variety  the  projecting 

*  Journ.  B.  H.  and  A.  Assot.  of  Ireland,  4th  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  186. 

1  Arch.  Atsoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  322.  J  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  461. 


SPIKED   CHAPES. 


307 


ends  shoot  out  into  regular  spikes,  the  ends  of  which  are  tipped 
by  a  small  button.  In  some  cases  the  length  from  point  to  point 
is  not  less  than  8  inches.  There  are  several  in  the  museum  of 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy.  Sir  W.  Wilde  considered  that  the 
bronze  sword  was  suspended  high  up  on  the  thigh  and  not  allowed 
to  trail  on  the  ground,  so  that  these  projections  would  be  less  in 
the  way  of  the  wearer  than  might  at  first  sight  appear.  The 
lengthening  of  these  points  may  have  been  the  result  of  a  kind 
of  prehistoric  dandyism,  analogous  to  that  which  led  to  the 
lengthening  of  the  points  of  boots  and  shoes  in  England  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fifteenth  century.*  Specimens  of  these  still  exist  in 
which  the  points  extend  6  inches  beyond  the  foot,  and  it  has  been 


Fig.  376.—  Thames 


asserted  that  they  had  to  be  chained  to  the  knees  of  the  wearers 
to  give  them  a  chance  of  walking  with  freedom. 

Though  chiefly  found  in  Ireland,  this  elongated  form  of  scabbard  has 
occasionally  been  discovered  in  England.  Fig.  376  represents  a  specimen 
from  the  Thames,  now  preserved  in  the  British  Museum. 

Another  example,  but  slightly  more  curved,  was  found  with  a  bronze 
sword  at  Ebberston,  Yorkshire,  and  is  in  the  Bateman  Collection.!  It  has 
been  figured.  The  rivets  for  attaching  it  to  the  wooden  scabbard  are  still 
in  position. 

This  type  of  scabbard  end  has  also  been  found  in  France.  In  the 
Museum  of  Bourges  is  an  example  about  5£  inches  long,  much  like  Fig. 
376,  but  rather  more  Y-shaped.  Another,  more  like  the  figure,  was  found 
with  a  bronze  sword,  near  MarsanneJ  (Drome),  and  a  third  in  the  tumulus 
of  Baresia  §  (Jura).  Another  was  found  at  the  end  of  an  iron  sword 
in  a  tumulus  at  Mons  ||  (Auvergne). 

*  Fair-holt's  "  Costume  in  England,"  p.  382. 
t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  321,  pi.  30,  fig.  2. 

I  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.  p.  136.     Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xxxix.  p.  306. 
§  Diet.  Arch,  de  la  Gaule. 

||  "Materiaux,"  vol.  xiii.  p.  64.  See  also  a  paper  by  M.  Alex.  Bertrand,  in  the  Bull. 
Soc.  Ant.  de  France,  1878,  p.  56.  "  Mater.,"  vol.  xv.  p.  162. 

x  2 


308  SCABBARDS   AND   CHAPES.  [CHAP.  XIII. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  the  ends  of  some  of  the  knife  sheaths  of  the 
Early  Iron  Period  *  expand  in  somewhat  the  same  manner,  so  as  to 
assume  an  anchor-like  appearance. 

A  bronze  bouterolle  or  scabbard  tip  of  a  very  peculiar  type,  the  sides 
being  elongated  and  flattened  out  so  as  to  form  two  sickle-shaped  wings 
curving  upwards,  was  exhibited  to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  in  1867f  as 
having  been  found  in  Britain.  A  figure  of  it  was  to  have  appeared  in 
the  Archaologia,  but  has  not  yet  been  published.  Perhaps  there  was 
room  to  doubt  its  English  origin.  Certainly  the  description,  with  the 
exception  of  the  sickle-shaped  wings  curving  upwards,  agrees  with  a  form 
of  which  several  examples  have  been  found  in  Germany  and  in  France.  J 
Some  of  these  are  sharp  at  the  end  like  a  socketed  celt,  with  two  ex- 
panding sickle-like  wings,  but  their  purpose  as  chapes  has  not  always 
been  recognised.  One  from  Hallstatt  is  described  by  Von  Sacken  §  as  a 
cutting  tool  to  be  attached  to  a  thin  shaft.  There  are  two  in  the  Museum 
at  Prague,  found  at  Korno  and  Brasy. 

One  from  Oberwald-behrungen  is  in  the  Museum  at  Wiirzburg. 
Another  is  at  Hanover. 

The  fact  that  traces  of  wooden  sheaths  to  daggers  have  been  found  in 
the  Wiltshire  and  other  barrows  has  already  been  mentioned,  but  no 


Fig.  377.—  Isle  of  Harty. 


bronze  fittings  have  been  found  with  them.  There  are,  however,  some 
objects  which  may  have  served  either  as  the  mouth-pieces  of  sheaths  for 
daggers  or  small  knives,  or  as  ferrules  for  their  hilts. 

One  of  these  from  the  Harty  hoard  is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  377. 

Another  of  identically  the  same  character,  but  rather  shorter,  was 
found,  with  a  bronze  knife  or  dagger  and  numerous  other  articles,  at 
Harden,  ||  Kent.  It  was  regarded  by  Mr.  Beale  Poste  as  the  mounting 
of  the  top  of  a  dagger  sheath  formed  of  leather. 

Another  was  found  with  various  other  relics  near  Abergele,^[  Denbigh- 
shire. 

Some  elongated  loops  formed  of  jet  are  of  a  shape  that  would  have 
served  for  the  mouth-pieces  of  sword  scabbards,  but  whether  so  fragile  a 
substance  was  used  for  such  a  purpose  may  well  be  questioned.  They 
may  have  been  merely  ornamental.  One  about  3  inches  long,  found  in 
Scotland,**  has  been  regarded  as  a  clasp  for  a  belt.  Possibly  these  objects 
in  bronze  may,  after  all,  be  of  the  nature  of  slides  or  clasps. 

Another  loop,  more  rounded  at  the  ends,  found  in  the  peat  at  Newbury,ff 

*  De  Bonstetten,  "Rec.  d'Ant.  Suisses,"  Supp.,  pi.  xxi.  1  ;  Von  Sacken,  "Grabf.  v. 
Hallstatt,"  Taf.  vi.  11. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  518.  J  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xxxix.  p.  305. 

§  "  Das  Grabfeld  von  Hallstatt,"  p.  155,  pi.  xix.  fig.  10. 

II  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  257,  pi.  xiii.  6  ;  Wilson,  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  441, 
fig.  82. 

IF  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  393.  **  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  556,  pi.  xxxvii.  3. 

tt  Arch.  Astoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  323,  pi.  xxvi.  5  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv. 
p.  521. 


FERRULES   ON   SWORD-HILTS.  309 

Berks,  has  been  described  as  a  slider  for  securing  some  portion  of  the 
dress,  or  for  passing  over  a  belt.  Not  improbably  this  is  their  true  inter- 
pretation. Some  other  slides  are  described  at  p.  404. 

Some  bronze  objects  of  nearly  similar  form,  but  about  3  inches  in 
length,  found  with  late  Celtic  remains,  have  been  regarded  as  the  cross- 
guards  *  of  daggers  or  knives. 

In  my  own  collection  is  a  fine  bronze  sword  from  Denmark  with  broad 
side  flanges  to  the  hilt  plate,  on  the  blade  of  which  is  a  bronze  loop  about 
i  inch  wide,  rebated  for  the  reception  of  wood,  but  without  any  rivet- 
holes.  Each  face  presents  four  parallel  beadings.  For  some  time,  in 
common  with  some  Danish  antiquaries,  I  regarded  this  loop  as  the  mouth- 
piece of  a  scabbard,  for  which  it  appears  well  adapted  ;  but  I  now  find  that 
such  a  view  is  erroneous,  and  that  this  loop  is  the  ferrule  for  receiving 
the  ends  of  the  plates  of  wood  or  horn  which  formed  the  hilt.  For  in 
the  barrow  of  Lydshoi,f  near  Blidstrup,  Frederiksborg,  was  a  bronze 
sword  with  a  similar  ferrule  upon  it,  and  the  remains  of  the  plates  of 
horn  beneath  it  still  in  position.  One  of  these  Danish  ferrules  is  of  gold.J 
A  sheath  §  from  a  barrow  at  Hvidegaard,  made  of  birch  wood  with  an  outer 
and  inner  casing  of  leather,  has  a  leather  band  for  the  mouthpiece,  and 
a  leather  eye  for  receiving  the  belt.  Some  small  sheaths  for  bronze  knives 
and  for  a  flint  dagger  found  at  the  same  time  are  simply  of  leather. 

*  Arch.  Inst.,  York  vol.  p.  33 ;  Arch.,  vol.  xiv.  pi.  xx.  6. 

t  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.  B  ii.  2;  Worsaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  115  ;  Madsen, 
"Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xi.  1. 

J  Boye,  "  Oplys.  Fortegnelse  over  det  K.  M.,"  p.  31. 

§"Annalen  for  Oldk.,"  1848,  p.  336;  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.  B.  ii.  7; 
Worsaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  119;  Madsen,  "Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  p.  9.  pi.  iv.  8. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 
SPEAR-HEADS,  LANCE-HEADS,  ETC. 

THERE  can  be  but  little  doubt  that  one  of  the  weapons  of  offence 
in  earliest  use  among  mankind  must  have  been  of  the  nature  of  a 
spear — a  straight  stick  or  staff,  probably  pointed  and  to  a  certain 
extent  hardened  in  the  fire.  The  idea  of  giving  to  such  a  staff  a 
still  harder  and  sharper  point  by  attaching  to  it  a  head  of  bone  or 
of  stone,  such  as  is  still  commonly  in  use  among  many  savage 
tribes,  would  come  next.  And,  lastly,  these  heads  or  points 
would  be  formed  of  metal,  when  its  use  for  cutting  tools  and 
weapons  had  become  general,  and  means  had  been  discovered  for 
rendering  it  available  for  this  particular  purpose.  In  the  earlier 
part  of  the  Bronze  Age,  when  bronze  was  already  in  use  for 
knife-daggers  and  even  for  daggers,  it  would  appear  that  the  spears 
and  darts,  if  any  such  were  in  use,  were  in  this  country  still  tipped 
with  flint.  How  long  this  practice  continued  it  is  impossible  to 
say,  and  it  is  even  doubtful  whether  any  bronze  spear-heads  were 
in  use  before  the  time  when  the  founders  had  discovered  the  art 
of  making  sockets  by  means  of  cores  placed  within  the  moulds. 
It  is,  however,  not  impossible  that  some  of  the  blades  found  in  the 
Wiltshire  barrows,  and  the  tanged  weapons  which  have  already 
been  described  in  Chapter  XL,  may  have  been  the  heads  of  spears 
rather  than  the  blades  of  daggers ;  but  even  at  the  period  to 
which  they  belong  the  art  of  making  cores  must  have  been  known, 
as  the  ferrule  found  at  Arreton  Down,  and  shown  in  Fig.  324,  will 
testify,  as  well  as  the  hollow  socket  of  Fig.  328. 

In  the  South-east  of  Europe  and  in  Western  Asia,  as  in  Cyprus 
and  at  Hissarlik,  tanged  and  not  socketed  spear- heads  have  been  found 
in  considerable  numbers  ;  but  such  a  form  is  of  very  rare  occur- 
rence in  Europe,  and  is  unknown  in  Britain,  unless  possibly  some 
of  the  blades  already  described  as  knives  or  daggers,  such  as 
Fig.  277,  were  attached  to  long  rather  than  short  handles,  and 


DIFFERENT    TYPES   OF   SPEAR- HEADS.  311 

should,  therefore,  have  been  treated  of  in  this  chapter  rather  than 
in  that  in  which  I  have  placed  them.  If  spears  were  deposited  in 
the  graves  with  the  dead,  the  shafts  must  in  all  probability  have  been 
broken,  for  as  a  rule  the  graves  for  bodies  buried  in  the  contracted 
position  are  not  long  enough  to  receive  a  spear  of  ordinary  length. 

In  the  case  of  some  few  ancient  socketed  tools  of  bronze,  the 
socket  has  not  been  formed  by  casting  over  a  core,  but  a  wide 
plate  of  metal  has  been  hammered  over  a  conical  mandril  so  as  to 
form  a  socket  like  that  of  many  chisels  of  the  present  day,  and  of 
the  iron  spear-heads  of  earlier  times.  I  am  not  aware  of  any 
bronze  instruments  with  the  sockets  formed  in  this  manner  ever 
having  been  found  in  this  country.  In  all  cases  the  sockets  have 
been  produced  by  cores  in  the  casting,  and  in  many  spear-heads 
the  adjustment  of  the  core  has  been  effected  with  such  nicety  that 
a  conical  hollow  extends  almost  to  the  tip,  with  the  metal  around 
it  of  uniform  substance,  and  often  very  thin  in  proportion  to  the 
size  of  the  weapon. 

The  heads  of  arrows,  bolts,  darts,  javelins,  lances,  and  spears  so 
nearly  resemble  one  another  in  character,  that  it  is  impossible 
to  draw  any  absolute  line  of  distinction  between  them.  The 
larger  varieties  must,  however,  have  served  for  weapons  retained 
in  the  hand  as  spears,  while  those  of  small  and  moderate  size  may 
have  been  for  weapons  thrown  as  lances,  or  possibly  discharged  as 
bolts  or  arrows.  In  length  these  instruments  vary  from  about 
2  inches  to  as  much  as  36  inches. 

Sir  W.  Wilde*  has  divided  the  Irish  spear-heads  into  four 
varieties,  as  follows : — 

1.  The  simple  leaf-shaped,  either  long  and  narrow,  or  broad, 
with  holes  in  the  socket  through  which  to  pass  the  rivets  to  fix 
them  to  the  shaft. 

2.  The  looped,  with  eyes  on  each  side  of  the  socket  below  and 
on  the  same  plane  with  the  blade.     These  are  generally  of  the 
long,  narrow,  straight-edged  kind. 

3.  Those  with  loops  in  the  angles  between  the  edge  of  the 
blade  and  the  socket. 

4.  Those  with  side  apertures  and  perforations  through  the  blade. 
To  these  four  classes  may  be  added — 

5.  Those  in  which  the  base  of  each  side  of  the  blade  projects  at 
right  angles  to  the  socket,  or  is  prolonged  downwards  so   as  to 
form  barbs. 

*  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  495. 


312 


SPEAR- HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.   XIV. 


A  remarkably  fine  specimen  of  a  broad  leaf-shaped  spear-head  of 
the  first  class  is  shown  in  Fig.  378.      The  original  was  found  in  the 


Fig.  378.— Thames,  London. 


Thames  at  London,  and  still  contains  a  portion  of  the  wooden  shaft 
smoothly   and   carefully  pointed.     The  wood   is,    I   think,    ash ; 


LEAF-SHAPED    SPEAR-HEADS.  313 

and  my  opinion  is  supported  by  that  of  Mr.  Thiselton  Dyer,  F.R.S., 
who  has  kindly  examined  the  shaft  for  me.  There  are  no  traces 
of  the  pin  or  rivet,  which  in  the  spear-heads  of  this  character 
appears  to  have  been  formed  of  wood,  horn,  or  bone,  rather  than 
of  metal,  probably  with  the  view  of  the  head  being  more  readily 
detached  from  the  shaft,  in  case  the  latter  was  broken.  I  have, 
however,  a  leaf-shaped  bronze  spear-head  of  this  class,  found  in 
the  Seine  at  Paris,  in  which  a  metallic  rivet  is  still  present.  It  is 
formed  of  a  square  rod  of  bronze,  which  at  each  end  has  been 
hammered  into  a  spheroidal  button,  of  at  least  twice  the  diameter 
of  the  hole  through  which  the  rivet  passes.  Portions  of  the 
wooden  shaft  are  still  adhering  to  the  rivet.  The  wood  in  this 
instance  also  appears  to  be  ash. 

I  have  a  rather  narrower  spear-head  of  the  same  type  as  Fig.  378  (lOf 
inches),  found  with  a  bronze  sword  near  Weymouth  ;  and  another  identical 
in  type  with  that  from  the  Thames,  but  only  9  inches  long,  found  in  the 
county  of  Dublin. 

Others  of  nearly  the  same  form  (12f  inches  and  8f  inches)  were  found 
with  a  bronze  sword  in  an  ancient  entrenchment  at  Worth,*  in  the  parish 
of  Washfield,  Devon. 

Another  spear-head  of  this  type  from  the  Thames  f  (  1  3£  inches)  is  in 
the  British  Museum,  as  are  others  (13  inches  and  10  inches  long). 

A  remarkably  fine  bronze  spear-head,  found  in  Lough  Gur,  Co.  Lime- 
rick, with  the  lower  part  of  the  socket  ornamented  with  gold,  is  of  much 
the  same  form  as  Fig.  378,  and  is  shown  on  the  scale  of  one-fourth  in 
Fig.  379.  The  ornamented  part  is  shown  on  the  scale  of  one-half  in 
Fig.  380.  It  is  in  the  collection  of  General  A.  Pitt  Eivers,  F.E.S.,  who 
has  thus  described  the  socket.  J  Around  it,  "  at  top  and  bottom,  are  two 
ferrules  of  very  thin  gold,  each  f  inch  in  width.  Each  ferrule  is  ornamented 
with  three  bands  scored  with  from  four  to  seven  transverse  lines,  and 
separated  from  each  other  by  two  bands  scored  with  incised  longitudinal 
lines.  The  two  ferrules  are  separated  by  a  band  about  -&  inch  in  width, 
in  which  longitudinal  lines  of  gold  have  been  let  into  grooves  in  the  bronze, 
leaving  an  intervening  line  between  each  of  the  gold  lines."  Most  of 
these  gold  strips  have,  however,  now  disappeared.  The  shaft  of  this  spear 
is  of  bog  oak  4  feet  8£  inches  long,  but  though  its  authenticity  has  been 
accepted  by  many  good  judges,  I  must  confess  that  I  do  not  regard  it 
as  the  original.  Some  other  spear-heads  ornamented  with  engraved  lines, 
but  not  with  inlaid  gold,  will  be  mentioned  further  on.  I  may  incidentally 
recall  the  fact  that  the  gold  ring  or  ferrule  around  the  spear-head  of 
Hector  is  more  than  once  mentioned  by  Homer.§ 

irapoiOe  8e  Xa/XTrero  Soupos 
Trcpi  Sc  xpvaeos  3e'€ 


Another  fine  specimen  of  a  spear-head  with  a  long  oval  leaf-shaped 
blade  in  Canon  Greenwell's  Collection  is  shown   in   Fig.  381.     It   was 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  120.  t  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  29. 

\  Journ.  Ethnol.  Soc.,  1868,  N.S.,  vol.  i.  p.  36.       $  Iliad,  vi.  v.  319  ;  viii.  v.  494. 


314 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


found  with  several  others  varying  in  length  from  6|  inches  to  11J  inches, 
and  numerous  other  articles  of  bronze  and  bone,  in  the  Heathery  Burn 
Cave,*  Durham.  As  will  be  seen,  the  blade  is  continued  as  a  slight 
narrow  projection  along  the  socket  as  far  as  the  rivet-hole.  The  edges 
are  somewhat  fluted. 

A  spear-head  of  nearly  the  same  form  (10^  inches) 
was  found  in  a  peat  moss  near  the  Camp  Graves,  f 
Bewcastle,  Cumberland.  Another  was  found  in  a 
hoard  at  Bilton,  Yorkshire.  J 

A  very  fine  example  (about  15  inches),  as  well  as 
a  smaller  one  of  the  same  type  (about  8  inches),  and 
one  with  lunate  openings  in  the  blade  (Fig.  418), 
were  found  with  two  swords  (see  Fig.  351)  near 
Whittingham,§  Northumberland. 

I  have  others  (9  inches  to  11  inches)  found  with 
broken  swords  at  Stoke  Ferry,  Norfolk,  and  from 
the  Reach  Fen  hoard.  The  same  form  occurs  in  Ire- 
land. I  have  a  fine  specimen  (8$  inches)  from 
Athlone.  Another  (13 £  inches)  is  engraved  by  Wilde 
as  his  Fig.  362.  A  very  narrow  spear-head,  14£  inches 
long,  and  only  If  inch  wide,  said  to  have  been  found 
in  a  barrow  near  Headford,  Co.  Gralway,  is  in  the 
British  Museum. 

A  spear-head  of  this  character  from  the  Thames 
(16f  inches),  not  fluted  at  the  edges  and  quite  plain, 
is  in  the  British  Museum.  The  blade  is  only  2J 
inches  wide. 

One  from  Stanwick,  Yorkshire  (8  inches),  is  in  the 
British  Museum,  as  is  one  (11  inches)  from  Bannock- 
burn,  Scotland.  An  Irish  specimen  (10  inches)  is 
devoid  of  rivet-holes. 

Another  spear-head  of  nearly  the  same  type,  but  of 
smaller  dimensions,  is  given  in  Fig.  382.  It  was 
found,  with  some  other  spear-heads  (Fig.  410), 
socketed  celts  (Figs.  155  and  157),  palstaves  (Fig  83), 
and  a  ferrule,  to  be  subsequently  mentioned,  at  Net- 
tleham,||  near  Lincoln,  in  1860.  They  are  now  in  the 
British  Museum. 

Others   of    the    same    type    have  been  found   at 
rjf  •  382.  "Winmarleigh^f  and  Cuerdale,**  Lancashire,  at  Ward- 

low,ft  Derbyshire,  Little  Wenlock,}}  Staffordshire 
(8  inches),  near  Windsor  §§  (7  inches),  at  Bottisham,||||  Cambridge,  and 
in  Herts.ff 

*  Dawkins,  "  Cave  Hunting,"  p.  143,  fig.  34. 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  231. 

I  Arch.  Assoe.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  349. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  429,  pi.  iv. 

II  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  159.     I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Franks  for  the  use  of  this 
block. 

IT  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  235,  pi.  xxiv.  3. 

**  Op.  cit.,  vol.  viii.  p.  332.  ft  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xv.  p.  235,  pi.  xxiv.  4. 

%  I  Hartshorne's  "  Salop.  Ant.,"  p.  96.  §§  Stukeley's  "  It.  Cur.,"  pi.  96,  vol.  ii. 

||||  Arch.  ASM.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  351. 

HH  Skelton's  "  Meyrick's  Anc.  Arm.,"  pi.  xlvii.  10. 


WITH    A    FILLET   ALONG   THE    MIDRIB. 


315 


have  one  from  the  Kiver  Lea*  at  St.  Margaret's,  Herts,  and  others 
from  Beach  Fen,  Cambridge. 

Others  were  in  the  Ghrilsfield  hoard, f  and  in  that  of  Pant-y-maen,+  or 
the  Grlancych  hoard.  One  from  the  latter  hoard  is  about  1 1  inches  long. 
Another,  more  like  Fig.  386,  about  4  inches.  With  them  were  found 
fragments  of  swords,  a  scabbard  tip,  some  rings  and  ferrules.  Others 
(9  inches  and  5  inches)  were  found,  with  a  socketed 
celt  and  knife,  a  tanged  chisel,  and  other  objects,  at 
Ty  Mawr,§  on  Holyhead  Mountain. 

Five  were  found  in  the  hoard  near  Stanhope,  ||  Durham, 
with  socketed  celts,  a  gouge,  &c. 

Of  Scottish  specimens  the  following  may  be  noticed : 
one  from  Lanark  ^[  (5|-  inches),  which  has  been  figured; 
two  (7f  inches)  rather  long  in  the  socket,  found  with 
a  bronze  sword  and  a  long  pin  on  the  Point  of  Sleat,** 
Isle  of  Skye;  one  (6  inches)  from  Balmaclellan,j-|-  New 
Galloway.  One  (5£  inches)  from  Duddingston  Loch, 
Edinburgh,  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

Leaf-shaped  spear-heads  such  as  Fig.  382  are  of 
frequent  occurrence  in  various  parts  of  France.  A 
number  were  found  at  Alise  Ste.  Eeine  JJ  (Cote  d'Or), 
several  of  them  ornamented  with  rings  round  the 
sockets. 

They  also  are  found  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Switzer- 
land §§  and  Savoy.  Many  of  them  have  parallel  rings 
round  the  mouth  of  the  socket  by  way  of  ornament. 
They  also  occur  in  Germany  ||||  and  Denmark. ^  One 
from  Northern  Germany,  still  containing  a  part  of  its 
wooden  shaft,  has  been  engraved  by  Von  Estorfi3.*** 

Those  from  Italy  and  Greece  have  very  fre- 
quently facets  running  along  the  midrib  which 
contains  the  socket. 

In  Fig.  383  is  shown  a  variety  (11£  inches)  with  a 
projecting  fillet  running  down  to  the  rivet-holes  as  in 
Fig.  381,  which,  however,  in  this  case  forms  the  termi- 
nation of  small  beads  running  along  the  sides  of  the 
central  rib.  There  is  also  a  beading  running  along  the  midrib.  The 
original  was  found,  with  another  spear-head,  plain,  a  socketed  celt,  some 
bronze  rings,  and  fragments  of  tin,  at  Achtertyre,ftf  Morayshire.  Mr.  E. 
D&y,  F.S.A.,  has  a  nearly  similar  spear-head  (5  inches),  found  in  Dublin. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  279. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  251  ;  "Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 
j  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  221.  §  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  254. 

||  Arch.  ^Eliana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  i.  If  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  110. 

*»  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  102.         ft  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  p.  417 
JJ  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  pi.  xiii.  2—14. 
$§  Keller,  passim. 

Illl  Von  Braunmuhl,    "  Alt  Deutschen  Grabmaler ; "   Schreiber,  "  Die    ehern.    Streit- 
keile,"  Taf.  ii.  19;  Lisch,  "Fred.  Francisc.,"  Taf.  viii. 

HH  Worsaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  190.        ***  "Heidnisch.  Alterth.,"  Taf.  viii.  fig.  I. 
ttt  P-  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435.     The  cut  has  been  kindly  lent  by  the  Society. 


316 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


Fig.  384.— North  of 
Ireland.    * 


A  more  elongated  form,  with  the  projecting  part 
of  the  socket  considerably  shorter,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  384,  from  a  specimen  found  in  the  North  of 
Ireland.  A  spear-head  (20  inches)  of  the  same 
form  of  outline,  but  with  a  slight  ridge  running 
the  whole  length  of  the  socket  from  its  mouth  to 
the  point,  was  found  at  Ditton,*  Surrey.  It  is  now 
in  the  British  Museum,  having  been  presented  by 
the  Earl  of  Lovelace. 

Another  (14f  inches)  in  the  same  collection,  found 
in  the  Kiver  Thames,  f  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Wandle,  retains  a  portion  of  the  original  wood  in 
its  socket.  It  was  found  in  company  with  a  bronze 
sword,  a  palstave,  and  a  long  pin  (Fig.  454). 

One  of  much  the  same  form  as  the  figure  ( 1 1  inches) 
was  found  at  Teigngrace,|  Devon.  It  has  a  delicate 
bead  running  down  each  side  of  the  midrib,  and 
continued  as  a  square  projection  below  the  blade. 

Canon  Grreenwell  has  a  long  spear-head  (14£ 
inches)  from  Quy  Fen,  with  grooves  running  up  the 
blade  at  the  side  of  the  socket.  The  ends  of  the 
blade  are  truncated  so  as  to  leave  projections  on 
the  sides  of  the  socket  above  the  rivet-hole.  These 
are  slightly  ornamented. 

I  have  seen  another  spear-head  (11£  inches)  with 
the  base  of  the  blade  slightly  truncated  in  a  similar 
manner.  It  was  found  near  Eastbourne. 

This  elongated  form  is  of  common  occurrence  in 
Denmark  and  Northern  Germany,  §  the  necks  being 
usually  ornamented  by  delicate  punch-marking  or 
possibly  engraving. 

A  broader  variety,  with  the  socket  considerably 
enlarged  in  the  part  extending  below  the  blade, 
is  shown  in  Fig.  385.  The  original  was  found  in 
company  with  other  spear-heads  like  Fig.  382  from 
5 1  inches  to  10$  inches  long,  two  socketed  celts  with 
three  vertical  lines  on  the  face  like  Fig.  125,  and 
two  somewhat  conical  plates  with  central  holes,  near 
Newark,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Green- 
well,  F.E.S. 

A  spear-head  (6£  inches)  not  quite  so  broad  in  its 
proportions,  said  to  have  been  found  in  a  tumulus, 
near  Lewes,  ||  Sussex,  is  in  the  British  Museum,  as 
is  another  (6£  inches)  found  near  Bakewell,  Derby- 
shire. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  364. 

t  A,  J.,  vol.  ix.  p.  8.  It  is  there  erroneously  stated  to  be 
26  inches  long. 

I  Trans.  Devon.  Assoc.,  vol.  vii.  p.  199 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd 
S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  40. 

§  Worsaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  185,  186  ;  "  Atlas  for  Nord. 
Oldk.,"  pi.  B  1,  16. 

||  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  28. 


VARIETIES   OF    LEAF-SHAPED   SPEAR-HEADS. 


317 


A  spear-head  of  the  same  general  outline  as  Fig.  385,  but  with  the  sides 
of  the  socket  straighter,  was  found  with  others,  as  well  as  with  1 6  socketed 
celts,  a  knife,  fragments  of  swords  and  of  a  quadrangular  tube  (qy.  a 
scabbard  ?)  and  a  long  ferrule,  near  Nottingham.* 

It  is  often  the  case  that  the  sides  of  the  upper  part  of  the  blade  are 
nearly  straight,  and  the  socket  itself  appears  large  in  proportion  to  the 
width  of  the  blade.  Such  a  spear-  or  lance-head  from  the  Reach  Fen 
hoard  is  shown  in  Fig.  386.  I  have  several  others  from  the  Fen  districts, 
as  well  as  one  of  a  shorter  and  broader  form  (5  inches)  with  a  large 


Fig.  385.— Newark.    } 


Fig.  386.-Reach  Fen.  *    Fig.  387.— Ireland, 


socket  extending  only  an  inch  below  the  blade,  found  at  Walthamstow, 
Essex. 

A  spear-head  from  Unter-TJhldingenf  exhibits  the  same  narrowness  of 
blade  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  socket. 

In  some  cases  the  blade  and  socket  are  of  nearly  equal  length. 

Fig.  387  is  here  by  permission  reproduced  from  Wilde's  Catalogue,  Fig. 
367.  It  is  only  3£  inches  long,  and  may  have  been  the  head  of  a  dart  or 
javelin  rather  than  of  a  spear.  I  have  an  example  of  nearly  the  same 
form  and  size  from  Co.  Dublin.  One  in  the  British  Museum  is  only 
2  inches  long,  though  the  mouth  of  the  socket  is  £  inch  in  diameter. 


*  Proc.  Soe.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  332. 


t  Keller,  6ter  Bericht,  Taf.  ix.  34. 


318  SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.,  [cHAP.  XIV. 

Some  of  these  very  small  weapons  may  possibly  have  served  to  point 
arrows.  In  the  Norwich  Museum  is  a  head  like  Fig.  387,  but  with  the 
blade  shorter  in  proportion  and  narrower,  the  total  length  of  which  is 
only  HI  inch.  The  blade  is  %  inch  wide,  and  the  socket  is  only  f  inch 
in  external  diameter.  A  bronze  arrow-head  is  said  to  have  been  found  in 
the  Isle  of  Portland,*  but  particulars  are  not  given.  Another  small  point, 
in  form  rather  like  Fig.  386,  and  only  3£  inches  long,  was  found  at  Llan- 
y-mynech  Hill,f  Montgomeryshire.  Another,  3£  inches,  was  found  near 
Pyecombe,J  Sussex. 

One  4  inches  long  is  said  to  have  been  found  in  Yorkshire.  § 
Some  double-pointed  arrow-heads  of  bronze  are  mentioned  as  having 
been  found  in  Ireland, ||  but  in  point  of  fact  these  were   "razors"  like 
Fig.  274. 

In  this  country,H  however,  and  not  improbably  in  others,  during 
the  period  when  bronze  was  in  use  for  cutting  tools  and  the  larger 
weapons,  flint  still  served  as  the  material  from  which  arrow-heads 
were  usually  made.  Such  a  method  of  taking  the  census  as  that 
devised  by  the  Scythian  king  Ariantas  would  in  Britain  have 
produced  but  small  results  ;  at  all  events,  but  few  of  the  inhabit- 
ants would  have  been  able  each  to  contribute  his  bronze  arrow- 
head. Many  of  the  bronze  arrow-heads  found  on  the  Continent 
appear  to  belong  to  the  Early  Iron  Age,  but  it  is  mainly  in 
southern  countries  that  they  have  been  found. 

In  Egypt**  and  Arabia  they  have  occurred  of  the  leaf-shaped  as 
well  as  of  the  three-edged  form,  which  latter  is  common  in 
Greece. 

Some  spear-heads  appear  to  have  had  the  form  of  their  point  somewhat 
modified  by  grinding,  as  if  from  time  to  time  they  became  blunted  by  use 
and  required  to  be  re-sharpened.  A  kind  of  ogival  outline  such  as  is 
shown  in  Fig.  388  appears,  however,  to  have  been  intentional.  The 
original  was  found  in  the  North  of  Ireland. 

This  ogival  outline  is  of  frequent  occurrence  among  the  bronze  spear- 
heads from  Hungary. 

The  lance-head  shown  in  Fig.  389,  also  from  Wilde  (Fig.  368),  has  the 
blade  of  a  trapezoid  rather  than  of  a  leaf-shaped  form,  and  in  general 
character  more  nearly  approaches  the  looped  variety,  Fig.  397,  than  those 
now  under  consideration.  The  socket  also  appears  to  be  quadrangular 
rather  than  round. 

It  will  now  be  well  to  speak  of  some  of  the  spear-heads  of  this 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  90. 

t  "Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  433;  vol.  xi.  p.  205. 

t  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  viii.  p.  269, 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  107. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  47.  There  is  an  article  by  Mr.  Du  Noyer  on  the  classifica- 
tion of  bronze  arrow-heads  in  vol.  vii.  p.  281. 

U  See  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  328. 

**  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  pp.  20,  27;  vol.  xxii.  p.  68;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v. 
p.  187 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  322. 


ORNAMENTED    ON    THE    SOCKETS. 


319 


class  which  have  either  their  sockets  or  their  blades  ornamented 
by  engraving  or  punching. 

In  Fig.  390  is  shown  a  spear-head  from  the  Eeach  Fen  hoard,  the 
nature  of  the  ornamentation  on  which  will  he  seen  from  the  cut. 
The  five  hands,  each  of  four  parallel  lines  around  the  socket,  have 
the  appearance  of  being  engraved ;  but  I  think  that  this  is  not  actually 
the  case,  but  that  the  lines  have  been  punched  in  with  a  chisel-like  punch. 


Fig. 388. 
North  of  Ireland. 


Ireland. 


Beach  Fen. 


The  short  transverse  dotted  lines  have  probably  been  made  with  a  serrated 
punch. 

Another  spear-head,  with  ornamentation  of  a  nearly  similar  character,  is 
shown  in  Fig.  391.  This  example  was  found  at  Thorndon,  Suffolk,*  in 
company  with  a  hammer  (Fig.  210),  a  knife  (Fig.  240),  a  gouge  (Fig. 
204),  and  an  awl  (Fig.  224),  the  whole  of  which  are  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  Another  in  the  same  collection  from  Thames  Ditton  (6£  inches) 
has  three  sets  of  three  rings  each,  with  short  vertical  lines  above  the 
upper  ring. 

A  small  lance-head  of  this  type  (4£  inches),  found  at  Ingham,  Norfolk, 
with  socketed  celts,  has  one  band  of  four  parallel  lines  round  the  socket. 
It  is  now  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at  Liverpool.  Another  from  the  Broad- 
ward  hoard  ( Shropshire)!  has  two  bands  of  four,  and  one  of  two  rings, 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3 ;  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  27. 
t  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  351. 


320 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


the  latter  close  to  the  mouth  of  the  socket.  A  second  in  the  same  hoard 
shows  eight  rings  near  the  mouth  of  the  socket,  and  a  line  running  down 
each  side  of  the  midrib  prolonged  below  the  blade  as  far  as  the  rivet-hole 
which  it  encloses.  A  spear-head  from  the  hoard  found  at  Beddington, 
near  Croydon,*  is  ornamented  in  nearly  the  same  manner.  It  was  found 
with  a  gouge,  socketed  celts,  a  portion  of  celt  mould,  &c.  That  from 
Culham,  near  Abingdon,  shown  in  Fig.  392,  has  three  sets  of  four  rings 
and  one  of  two,  as  well  as  some  vertical  dotted  lines  above  the  upper  ring. 
In  this  case  the  bands  seem  to  have  been  punched  in  with  a  serrated 
punch  which  produced  four  short  lines  at  each  stroke,  and  by  skilful 
manipulation  these  short  lines  were  made  to  join  so  as  to  form  a  continuous 
ring. 

I  have  a   spear-head   from  Lakenheath,  Suffolk  (5f  inches),  with  a 
small  raised  band  cast  on  the  socket  just  below  the  rivet-hole. 
A  spear-head  (6£  inches)  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh, 
found  near  Forfar,    is   ornamented  with 
two  bands  of  three  parallel  lines  round 
the  socket. 

The  sockets  of  some  Irish  spear-heads 
are  highly  decorated.  That  of  a  long  leaf- 
shaped  specimen  from  Athenry,  Co.  Gal- 
way,  is  shown  in  Fig.  393,  kindly  lent  me 
by  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy.  It  is  Fig. 
382  in  Wilde's  Catalogue,  in  which  also 
some  other  examples  are  engraved.  The 
chevron  ornament  and  the  alternate  direc- 
tion of  the  hatching  are  highly  charac- 
teristic of  the  style  of  the  Bronze  Period. 

A  similar  decoration  is  found  on  English 
specimens.  One  found  at  Bilton,  York- 
shire,! with  other  spear-heads,  fragments 
of  swords,  and  socketed  celts,  has  round 
the  socket  three  bands  of  triangles  alternately  hatched  and  plain,  and 
the  blade  is  ornamented  with  a  single  row  of  the  same  kind  on  each 
side  of  the  central  rib.  One  from  Edington  Burtle,  Somerset  (4£  inches), 
in  the  Taunton  Museum,  has  a  band  of  hatched  triangles  above  three 
bands  of  parallel  lines  with  transverse  lines  between. 

A  broken  spear-head  from  the  Broadward  J  find  has  the  blade  orna- 
mented in  the  same  way.  A  row  of  plain  triangles  is  left  on  each  side 
of  the  midrib,  while  the  rest  of  the  blade  is  hatched,  the  set  of  parallel 
lines  in  each  point  between  the  plain  triangles  being  alternately  to  the 
right  and  to  the  left. 

A  fragment  of  a  blade  from  the  Haynes  Hill  hoard,  §  Kent,  has  ring 
ornaments  engraved  along  each  side  of  the  midrib. 

As  has  already  been  observed,  the  edges  of  this  class  of  spear-heads 
are  not  unfrequently  fluted,  but  it  occasionally  happens  that  the  whole 
blade  is  ornamented  by  minute  ribs  and  flutings.  The  spear-head 
(10£  inches)  found  with  two  swords  and  two  ferrules  at  Fulbourn,  Cam- 
bridge,]] affords  an  example  of  this  kind.  On  each  side  of  the  central  rib 

*  Anderson's  "  Croydon  Preh.  and  Rom.,"  p.  11,  pi.  iii.  4. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  349.  J  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  351. 

1.  iv.  5. 


Culham."    i 


§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  282. 


||  Areh.,  vol.  lix.  p.  56,  pi. 


WITH   LOOPS   AT   THE    SIDES. 


321 


containing  the  socket  are  two  sharp  ridges  one  below  the  other,  next 
comes  a  hollow  fluting,  then  a  ridge,  and  then  the  fluting  which  forma 
the  edge.  To  judge  from  the  engraving,  another  found  at  Gringley, 
Nottinghamshire,*  must  also  have  been  fluted  in  a  somewhat  similar 
manner. 

The  discovery  of  other  leaf-shaped  spear-heads  with  rivet-holes  through 
the  sockets  is  recorded  to  have  been  made  at  the  following  places,  and 
many  others  might  no  doubt  be  added  to  the  list :  the  Thames,  near 
Battersea  f  (16f  inches) ;  near  Wallingford  J  (7  J  inches) ;  and  Kingston  § 
(6£  and  7A  inches) ;  two  (7f  inches  and  6  inches)  were  found  near  Tod- 
dington,  Beds;  ||  at  Beacon  Hill,  Charnwood  Forest,  Leicestershire,^  two 
(7£  inches  and  6£  inches)  were  found  with  a  socketed  celt  and  gouge. 
Others  were  discovered  near  Yarlet,  Stafford- 
shire ;  **  near  Alnwick  Castle  ff  (sixteen  with 
celts  and  swords) ;  Vronheulog,  Merioneth- 
shire; JJ  and  Longy  Common,  Alderney  §§  (one 
with  blade  ornamented). 

The  spear-heads  of  the  second  of  the 
classes  into  which  they  are  here  divided 
are  those  with  loops  at  the  side  of  the 
projecting  socket.  These  loops  are  usually 
more  elongated  than  those  on  socketed 
celts  and  palstaves,  though  they  probably 
served  a  similar  purpose,  that  of  securing 
the  metallic  head  to  the  wooden  handle. 
The  metal  of  which  the  loops  are  formed 
has  frequently  been  flattened  by  hammer- 
ing, so  as  to  reduce  the  projection  of  the 
loops  beyond  the  socket ;  the  flattened 
part  is  often  wrought  into  a  lozenge  form. 

The  strings  which  passed  through  these 
loops  were  probably  secured  to  some  stop 
or  collar  on  the  shaft,  and  may  have  been 
arranged  in  some  chevron-like  pattern  with  which  these  lozenges 
coincided.  There  are  usually  no  rivet-holes  in  the  spear-heads  of 
this  class. 

A  specimen  exhibiting  these  lozenges,  and  with  the  blade  of  nearly 
the  same  form  as  those  of  the  spear-heads  of  the  first  class,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  394.  The  upper  part  of  the  midrib  containing  the  socket  is  ridged, 
so  that  the  section  near  the  point  is  almost  square.  The  socket  is  slightly 
fluted  round  the  mouth.  The  original  was  found  at  Thetford,  Suffolk. 

A  spear-head  of  the  same  type,  but  with  only  a  single  large  loop,  found 


Fig.  394.— Thetford.    f 


*  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  361,  pi.  Ixiv.  1. 
I  P.  S.  A.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  280. 
||  Arch.,  vol.  xxvii.  p.  105. 
**  Plot's  "  Stafford.,"  p.  404,  pi.  xxxiii.  ! 
}  J  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  210. 


t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  244. 

§  P.  S.  A.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  83. 

IT  P.  S.  A.,  vol.  iv.  p.  323. 

ft  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113. 

§§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  9. 


322  SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIV. 

in  Glen  Kenns,  Galloway,  is  engraved  in  the  Archceologia*  but  it  seems 
probable  that  the  figure  is  somewhat  inaccurate. 

Another  (5£  inches)  with  two  loops  was  found  at  Hangleton  Down, 
Suffolk.!  Another  (5£  inches),  rather  more  elongated  than  Fig.  394,  was 
found  at  Trefeglwys,  Montgomeryshire.!  Another  from  Shirewood 
Forest  is  engraved  in  the  Archteologia.§  It  has  a  slightly  ogival  outline 
on  each  side,  a  peculiarity  I  have  noticed  in  other  specimens.  An  example 
given  in  the  same  plate  seems  to  have  lost  the  flat  part  of  the  blade. 

I  have  one  (6^  inches)  from  Fyfield,  near  Abingdon. 

Mr.  M.  Fisher  has  a  specimen  from  the  Fens  at  Ely  (5f  inches),  with 
the  midrib  ridged  like  Fig.  396. 

One  from  Hagbourn  Hill,  near  Chiltern,  Berks,  ||  is  reported  to  have 
been  found  with  a  socketed  celt,  a  pin  like  Fig.  458,  and  another  like 
Fig.  453,  together  with  a  bronze  bridle-bit,  and  some  portions  of  buckles 
bike  those  of  the  late  Celtic  Period.  These  are  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
A  few  coins  of  gold  and  silver  are  said  to  have  been  found  at  the  same 
time. 

One  (6  inches)  was  found  at  Chartham,  near  Canterbury.^ 

One,  5  inches  long,  from  the  Thames,  is  in  the  British  Museum.  It  has 
a  small  ridge  or  bead  along  the  mid-feather.  The  loops  have  a  diamond 
engraved  or  punched  upon  them. 

In  one  from  Beckhampton,  Wilts**  (4f  inches),  the  side  loops  do  not 
appear  to  be  flattened. 

The  form  is  of  not  unfrequent  occurrence  in  Ireland,  though  perhaps 
that  with  the  raised  ribs  on  the  blade,  like  Fig.  397,  is  more  common. 

In  one  instance  (13£  inches)  ff  the  loops  upon  the  socket  are  not  opposite 
each  other,  though,  as  usual,  in  the  same  plane  as  the  blade. 

A  small  specimen  (5J  inches)  from  Fairholme,  Lockerbie,  Dumfries- 
shire, is  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  small  example  of  this  type  (about  3^  inches)  is  in  the  collection 
formed  by  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare  at  Stourhead,  and  now  at  Devizes,  and  in  the 
same  case  with  the  dagger  blades.  It  has  been  figured  by  the  late  Dr. 
Thurnam  \\  in  his  valuable  memoir  in  the  Archaologia,  and  is  thought  by 
him  to  have  been  found  in  a  grave  with  burnt  bones  in  one  of  the  Wilsf ord 
barrows  near  Stonehenge. 

There  is  a  diminutive  variety  of  this  class  of  weapon  with  two  loops,  in 
which  the  blade  is  extremely  narrow,  like  that  from  Lakenheath  shown 
in  Fig.  395.  I  have  another,  4i  inches,  with  even  a  smaller  and  shorter 
blade,  from  Cumberland. 

Canon  Greenwell  has  one  only  3  inches  long,  found  near  Nottingham. 
It  has  three  parallel  grooves  round  the  socket  mouth.  One,  4 £  inches,  from 
Ashdown,  Berks,  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  fragment  of  another  of  very  small  dimensions  was  found  at  Farley 
Heath,  Surrey,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

A  lance-head  with  a  more  leaf-shaped  blade  (6J  inches)  is  said  to  have 
been  found  in  a  tumulus  at  Craigton,  near  Kinross. §§ 

*  Vol.  x.  p.  480,  pi.  xl.  5.  t  Sussex  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  viii.  p.  269. 

t  "  Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  432,  and  vol.  xii.  p.  25. 

§  Vol.  ix.  p.  94,  pi.  iii.  ||  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  348,  pi.  1. 

f  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  334.        **  Arch.  Inst.,  Salisb.  vol.,  p.  110. 

ft  Wilde,  "Catal.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  496,  fig.  363;  "Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  15. 

II  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  447;  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  208. 
§§   Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xi.  p.  168. 


WITH  LOOPS,  FROM  IRELAND. 


323 


An  Irish  example,  2f  inches  long,  and  comparatively  broad  in  propor- 
tion to  its  length,  has  been  regarded  as  an  arrow-head.  It  was  found  at 
Clonmel,  Co.  Tipperary.*  It  has  probably  been  broken  and  repointed. 
An  example  much  like  Fig.  395  is  engraved  by  Wilde  as  his  Fig.  379. 

In  some  cases  there  is  a  ridge  running  along  the  whole  or  a  great  part 
of  the  midrib  on  the  blade  so  as  to  make  the  section  near  the  point  almost 
cruciform.  An  example  of  this  kind  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Cam- 
bridge is  shown  in  Fig.  396.  In  this  case  the  side  loops  are  unusually 


Fig.  395. 
Lakenheath.    $ 

near  the  mouth  of  the  socket,  the  cavity  of  which  extends  about  half-way 
along  the  blade.  Canon  Green  well  has  an  example  of  this  type  (6£  inches), 
from  Langton,  Lincolnshire,  with  a  longer  socket,  and  the  loops  about 
half-way  along  it. 

This  ribbing  along  the  midrib  is  of  frequent  occurrence  on  Irish  spear- 
heads, and  was  probably  intended  to  strengthen  as  well  as  to  decorate 
the  blade.  The  projecting  ribs  on  the  flat  part  of  the  blade  were  also 
probably  added  for  the  same  purpose.  Fig.  397  shows  a  spear-head  with 
these  ridges,  found  in  the  North  of  Ireland.  The  blade  is  carried  down 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  282,  and  xviii.  p.  167. 
Y  2 


324 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LAXCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


as  a  slight  projection 
along  the  socket  until  it 
meets  the  side  loops,  the 
outer  faces  of  which  are 
expanded  into  lozenges. 

I  have  a  shorter  ex- 
ample (oi-  inches)  from 
Old  Kilpatrick,  Dum- 
bartonshire, Scotland ; 
one  from  Tennon,  Co. 
Tyrone,  is  engraved  in 
the  A.rchceological  Jour- 
nal* 

In  some  the  blade  is 
proportionally  wider  and 
shorter.  I  have  one 
from  near  Enniskillen 
(7^  inches),  in  which  the 
blade  between  the  socket 
and  the  ribs  is  so  thin 
that  two  long  holes  have 
been  eaten  or  worn 
through  it,  giving  it  the 
appearance  of  belonging 
to  the  perforated  class 
to  be  subsequently  de- 
scribed. 

An  Irish  specimen 
much  like  Fig.  397  is 
engraved  in  "  Horse 
Ferales."  f 

A  small  broad-bladed 
form  is  of  very  common 
occurrence  in  Ireland. 
An  example  is  given  in 
Fig.  398.  Another  is 
engraved  by  Wilde  (Fig. 
369).  Some  have  two 
diagonal  ribs  on  each 
side  of  the  blade  instead 
of  only  one.  A  rather 
more  pointed  form  is 
given  by  Vallancey.J 
There  are  others  figured 
in  the  "  Hora  Fe- 
rales." § 

This  type  is   of  rare 

*  Vol.  ii.  p.  187. 
t  PI.  vi.  17. 

J"Coll.  Hib.,"  vol.  iv. 
pi.  xi.  v. 

§  PL  vi.  12,  13. 


Fig.  400.— Ireland,    t 


DECORATED    ON   THE    BLADE. 


325 


occurrence  in  England,  but  one  (4J  inches  ?)  much  like  Fig.  398  was 

ploughed  up  at  Heage,*  in  the   parish  of   Duffield,    Derbyshire,    and 

another  (4f  inches)  was  found  near  Lincoln,  f 

A  gracefully  shaped  spear-head,  with  parallel  headings  upon  the  blade, 

and  having  very  flat  loops  with  pointed  oval  faces  on  the  socket,  was  found 

in  the  Thames,  and  formed  part  of  the  Eoach  Smith  Collection,  now  in  the 

British  Museum.     It  is  shown  in  Fig.  399,  and  appears  to  be  unique  of 

its  kind.     A  plain  spear-head  (7  inches)  of  much  the  same  form,  and 

another  of  the  same  length,  but  wider  and  flatter,  were  found  at  Edington 

Burtle,    Somerset,    and    are   now    in    the 

Museum  at  Taunton. 

A  very  remarkable  specimen  in  the  Royal 

Irish  Academy  is   engraved  as   Fig.   400. 

It  has  already  been  figured  on  a  small  scale 

by  Wilde,  who  thus  describes  it :  J    "A  long 

narrow    spear    with    concave    or   recurved 

sides,    and  long    lozenge-shaped  loops    on 

each  side  of  the  socket,  where  the  circular 

form  of  that  portion  of  the  weapon  becomes 

angular.      Narrow    lateral  ridges   connect 

these   loops  with  the  base   of  the  blade, 

which  has  hollow  bevelled  edges,  and  is  as 

sharp  as  the  day  it  came  from  the  mould. 

The  socket  margin  is  decorated  with  a  fillet 

of  five  elevations,  and  a  double  linear  en- 
graved  or  punched   ornament    forming   a 

triangular  pattern  like  that  seen  in  some 

antique   gold  ornaments.      A  sharp   ridge 

extends  along  the  middle  of  the  socket  from 

the  loops  to  the  point,  on  each  side  of  which, 

as  well  as  in  the  angles  between  the  blade 

and  the  socket,  there  are  lines  of  small  oval 

punched  indentations  apparently  effected  by 
the  hand." 

In  one  of  the  looped  forms  both  the 
blade  and  the  socket  are  often  highly  orna- 
mented. The  socket  part  is  made  to  appear 
somewhat  like  a  haft  to  the  blade,  as  in 
the  Arreton  Down  specimen  (Fig.  328),  and 
the  blade  itself  has  ridges  running  nearly 
parallel  to  the  edges,  the  midrib  being 
almost  square  in  section.  An  example  of  this  kind  from  Ballymena 
is,  by  the  kindness  of  Mr.  E.  Day,  F.S.A.,  shown  in  Fig.  401.  As  will 
be  seen,  the  socket,  blade,  and  external  faces  of  the  loops  are  all  orna- 
mented with  engraved  and  punctured  lines.  A  beautiful  example  from 
Ireland  (6£  inches),  the  socket  engraved  with  a  double  ring  of  chevrons 
near  the  middle,  and  a  single  ring  near  the  base,  and  also  ornamented 
with  dotted  circles  and  lines  extending  down  the  blade,  is  in  the 
British  Museum.  It  has  two  knobs  on  each  side  of  the  socket  simulating 
rivets. 

*  Arch.  Assoe.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  280;  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  9. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  285.  %  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  496. 


Fig.  401.— Near  BaUytnena. 


326 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIV. 


Other  varieties  with  the  midrib  more  rounded  are  given  by  Wilde,* 
and  two  of  his  figures  are,  by  the  kindness  of  the  Council  of  the  Eoyal 
Irish  Academy,  here  reproduced  as  Figs.  402  and  403. f  The  original  of 
Fig.  402  is  5  inches  long.  It  has  "a  central  circular  stud  opposite  the 
base  of  the  blade,  beneath  which  there  are  a  series  of  minute  continuous 
lines  margined  on  both  sides  by  a  row  of  elevated  dots."  The  socket  and 
the  outer  surface  of  the  loops  are  also  highly  decorated. 

Fig.  403  is  7£  inches  long,  and  is  also  artistically  ornamented. 


Fig.  402.— Ireland 


Fig.  403.— Ireland. 


Fig.  404.— Ireland. 


An  example  of  this  kind  is  given  in  "  Horse  Ferales."  J 

One  (5  j  inches)  from  the  Dean  Water,  Forfarshire,  is  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh.  The  blade  is  ornamented  by  incised  lines  and 
punctulations. 

Fig.  404,  also  kindly  lent  by  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy  (Wilde,  Fig.  378), 
shows  a  smaller  and  a  plainer  type. 

An  unornamented  lance-head  of  this  type  (5  inches)  was  found  at  Peel,|| 
in  the  Isle  of  Man.  Another,  5f  inches,  with  three  bands  of  parallel 
lines  round  the  socket,  was  obtained  at  Douglas,  Lanarkshire.  § 


*  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  pp.  498,  501. 

J  PI.  vi.  19. 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  Ill,  pi.  xi.  4. 


t  Ibid.,  Figs.  385  and  386,  p.  502. 
||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  187. 


•WITH    LOOPS   AT   THE    BASE    OF   THE    BLADE.  327 

The  spear-heads  of  this  class  with  loops  at  the  side  of  the  sockets  are 
almost  unknown  out  of  the  British  Islands.  In  my  own  collection,  how- 
ever, is  one  from  the  Seine  at  Paris  (6£  inches),  almost  identical  in 
form  with  Fig.  394,  but  with  the  lozenge-shaped  plates  forming  the 
loops  somewhat  wider. 

A  highly  ornamented  spear-head  from  Hungary,*  preserved  in  the 
Museum  at  Buda-Pest,  has  small  semicircular  loops 
at  the  sides  of  the  socket. 

The  third  class  of  spear-heads  consists  of 
those  with  loops  at  the  base  of  the  blade  con- 
necting it  with  the  socket.  There  are  many 
varieties  of  this  class,  which  includes  some 
of  the  most  elegant  forms  of  these  ancient 
weapons.  The  reason  for  adopting  this  par- 
ticular kind  of  loop  appears  to  be  that  they 
were,  when  thus  attached  to  the  blade,  less 
liable  to  be  broken  off  or  damaged  than  when 
they  formed  isolated  projections  from  the 
socket.  The  spear-heads  were  also  more  readily 
polished  and  furbished  when  the  socket  was 
left  as  a  plain  tube. 

The  loops  are  very  frequently  formed  by  the 
continuation  of  two  ribs  along  the  margin  of 
the  blade,  which  are  curved  inwards  from  the 
base  of  the  blade  until  they  join  the  socket. 

A  good  example  of  this  formation  of  the  loop  is 
shown  in  Fig.  405.  The  original  was  found  at 
Elford,  Northumberland,  and  is  in  the  collection 
of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.K.S. 

Another  of  nearly  the  same  form,  but  without 
the  ribs  on  the  blade,  was  found  near  Lowthorpe, 
Yorkshire,  E.R.,  and  is  in  the  possession  of  Mr. 
T.  Boynton,  of  Ulrome  Grange. 

The  very  graceful  spear-head  shown  in  Fig.  406 
was  found  at  Isleham  Fen,  Cambridge,  in  1863, 
and  is  a  remarkably  fine  casting,  the  cavity  for  the 
reception  of  the  shaft  being  no  less  than  12|  inches  Fig.  405.— Elford.  i 

in  length,  and  perfectly  central  in  the  blade. 

I  have  another  spear-head  of  the  same  type  (18  inches),  probably  from 
the  Thames,  almost  as  well  cast,  but  rather  heavier  in  proportion  to  its  size. 
There  are  traces  of  wood  in  the  socket,  as  is  also  the  case  in  another  of  the 
same  form  (14£  inches)  dredged  from  the  Thames  at  Battersea,f  and  now 
in  the  Bateman  Collection.  The  wood  has  been  thought  to  be  ash. 
Another  similar,  but  originally  about  20  inches  long,  was  found  in  the 

*  Lindenschmit,  "  Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  vol.  ii.  Heft  iv.  Taf.  i.  9. 
t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  329,  pi.  xxiv.  fig.  3. 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LAXCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.   XIV. 

Thames  near  Runnymede ;  *  and  another  in  the  col- 
lection of  General  A.  Pitt  Rivers,  F.R.S.,  17  inches 
long,  was  found  at  Hampton  Court. 

Another  (13f  inches)  from  the  Thames  at  Thames 
Ditton  is  in  the  British  Museum. 

One  (15J  inches)  from  Bottisham  Lode,  Cam- 
bridge, is  in  the  British  Museum;  as  is  another  (14J 
inches)  from  the  New  River  Works,  Pentonville. 
I  have  seen  others  from  Coveney  Fen  (16f  inches, 
Mr.  Fisher),  and  from  Woolpit,  near  Bury  St. 
Edmunds  (8|  inches).  The  Wade  of  one  (llf  inches) 
without  the  socket  was  found  at  Stanwick,  York- 
shire, and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

One  (13£  inches)  was  found  with  three  rapier- 
shaped  blades  near  Maentwrog,  Merionethshire,  and 
is  in  the  same  collection.! 

Another,  broken,  in  the  Museum  at  Taunton,  is 
said  to  have  been  found  in  the  Roman  villa  at 
Wadsford,  Combe  St.  Nicholas,  near  Chard.  Its 
original  length  must  have  been  about  1 8  inches. 

In  the  specimen  from  Stibbard,  Norfolk,]:  shown 
in  Fig.  407,  the  ribs  upon  the  blade  are  less  distinct, 
and  the  loops  are  widened  out  so  as  to  show  a 
lozenge  form  when  the  edge  of  the  blade  is  seen. 
This  spear-head  was  found  with  nine  others  and 
about  seventy  palstaves  about  1806,  and  is  in  the 
state  in  which  it  left  the  mould,  having  never  been 
finished  by  hammering  and  grinding,  though  the 
core  has  been  extracted.  I  have  seen  a  specimen  in 
the  collection  of  Mr.  J.  Holmes,  found  at  Morley, 
near  Leeds,  in  which  the  hammering  process  had 
been  applied  to  a  part  only  of  the  blade,  which 
had  evidently  broken  in  the  operation.  The  partly 
finished  base  and  the  unfinished  point  were  found 
together. 

An  Irish  example  of  this  form  has  been  engraved 
by  Vallancey.§ 

This  type  is  rare  in  France,  but  a  specimen  is  in 
the  Museum  at  Carcassonne  (Aude),  and  another  in 
that  at  St.  Germain. 

In  some  spear-heads  of  nearly  the  same  form 
there  is  a  raised  bead  running  down  the  midrib  as  in 
Fig.  408.  This  beautifully  finished  weapon  was 
bought  in  Dublin,  but  I  cannot  say  in  what  part  of 
Ireland  it  was  found. 

A  smaller  and  broader  specimen  (7  inches)  in  my 
collection  was  found  at  Clough,  near  Antrim. 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Jour.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  322. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  365,  pi.  Ixx.  3. 

J  Arch.  Inst.,  Norwich  vol.,  p.  xxvi.  Another  from 
this  hoard  is  in  the  Brit.  Mus.,  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  22.  Mr. 
Franks  thinks  that  the  mould  was  in  four  pieces  besides  the 
core,  but  on  this  point  I  am  rather  doubtful. 

§  Vol.  iv.  pi.  xi.  6. 


Fig .  406 .— Isleham  Fen. 


OF    CRUCIFORM    SECTION    NEAR    THE    POINT. 


329 


I  have  another  (lOf  inches)  from  the  north  of  Ireland  in  which  the 
midrib  half-way  along  the  blade  expands  to  form  an  edge  almost  as  sharp 
as  that  at  the  sides.  Near  the  point  the  section  is  cruciform,  as  in 
Fig.  396. 


Fig.  407.— Stibbard. 


Fig.  409.— Lakenheath  Fen.  J 


A  spear-head  found  near  Hay,  on  the  river  Wye,  and  now  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,  presents  the  same  peculiarity  as 
Fig.  408. 

Some   ancient  bronze   spear-heads  from  China*   are   provided   with 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  415. 


330 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


central  ridges  of  the  same  kind  on  the  blades.  They  have  but  one  loop, 
and  that  is  on  the  face,  and  there  is  a  deep  notch  at  the  mouth  of  the 
socket. 

The  long  blades  are  often  more  leaf-shaped  and  less  truncated  at  the 
base  than  that  shown  in  Fig.  406.  A  very  large  specimen  of  this  kind 
from  Lakenheath  Fen  is  shown  on  the  scale  of  £  inch  in  Fig.  409.  The 
point  is  unfortunately  lost,  but  is  restored  in  the  engraving.  The  midrib 
containing  the  socket  is  ridged,  and  the  outer  faces  of  the  loops  expand 
into  the  diamond  form. 

One  of  nearly  the  same  character  (22J  inches),  found 
in  the  Thames  at  Datchet,  forms  part  of  the  Eoach  Smith 
Collection,*  now  in  the  British  Museum.  Another  (11^ 
inches)  was  found  with  palstaves  at  Sherford,f  near 
Taunton. 

A  specimen  in  the  British  Museum  (15f  inches)  has 
an  ornament  of  hatched  chevrons  round  the  base  of  the 
socket,  and  the  lozenge-shaped  flanges  are  also  orna- 
mented with  hatched  open  mascles. 

A  spear-head  of  the  same  form  (15£  inches)  from 
Ireland  J  has  the  ridge  decorated  with  lines  of  dots,  and 
the  socket  with  bands  and  a  chevron  pattern.  A 
plain  specimen,  no  less  than  26J  inches  long,  found  at 
Maghera,  Co.  Londonderry,  §  has  been  figured  by 
Wilde. 

In  others  the  midrib  is  conical,  and  the  blade  nearly 
flat,  or  with  only  a  shallow  channel  along  the  sides  of 
the  midrib.  One  such  from  the  find  at  Nettleham,  Lin- 
colnshire, ||  now  in  the  British  Museum,  is,  by  the  kind- 
ness of  Mr.  Franks,  shown  in  Fig.  410.  I  have  one 
nearly  similar  (9J  inches)  from  Edmonton  Marsh.  One 

«(?2-  inches)  from  the  Thames  at  Lambeth  is  in  the 
British  Museum,  as  are  others  from  the  same  river 
varying  in  length  from  9  to  15£  inches. 
One  from  Speen,  Berks  ^f  (7  inches),  is  of  the  same 
character,  as  is  one  (8J  inches)  from  Crawford,  Lanark- 
shire.** Another  (9  inches)  from  Horsey,  near  Peter- 
borough, Hunts,  has  been  engraved  by  Artis-ff 
Another  (10£  inches)  from  the  Severn  at  Kempsey, 
Worcestershire,  |J  appears  to  have  been  of  this  type. 
I  have  seen  others  from  the  Cambridge  Fens.  One  (5£ 
inches)  from  Edington  Burtle,  Somerset,  is  in  the  Taun- 
ton Museum. 

A  spear-head  of  this  character  (10£  inches),  with  the  faces  of  the  loops 
lozenge-shaped,    was  found  with   two  looped    palstaves   and    a   chisel 

*  "  Catal.  Mus.  Lond.  Ant.,"  p.  83,  No.  370. 

t  Pring,  "  Brit,  and  Rom.  Taunton,"  pi.  iii. 

|  "Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  20. 

§  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  366,  p.  496;  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  18. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 

IT  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  322,  pi.  xxvi.  3. 

**  Op.  tit.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  110,  pi.  xi.  3. 

ft  "  Durobrivae,"  p.  Ivi.  4. 

JJ  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  354;  Allies,  "Worcester.,"  p.  60. 


Fig.  410. 


WITH   OPENINGS    IN    THE    BLADE. 


(Fig.  197)  at  Broxton,  about 
twelve  miles  south  of  Chester. 
It  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Sir 
P.  de  M.  G.  Egerton,  Bart.,  who 
has  kindly  shown  it  to  me. 

Spear-heads  of  this  character 
are  occasionally  found  in  Scot- 
land. Two  from  Wigtonshire* 
have  been  figured. 

The  form  is  common  in  Ireland. 
I  have  one  12  inches  long  from, 
one  of  the  northern  counties. 

A  spear-head  (6£  inches)  with 
small  projecting  loops  at  each 
side  of  the  blade  was  found  near 
Hawick,  Roxburghshire.! 

In  Fig.  4 1 1  is  shown  a  remark- 
ably fine  spear-head  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Canon  Grreenwell,  F.E.S., 
which  exhibits  the  peculiarity  of 
having  the  loops  formed  by  the 
prolongation  of  small  ribs  on  each 
side  of  the  midrib,  and  of  having, 
in  addition,  a  rivet-hole  through 
the  socket.  It  was  found  at 
Knockans,  Co.  Antrim. 

An  Irish  spear-head  ( 1 4f  inches) 
with  loops  at  the  lower  end  of 
the  blade,  and  the  socket  pierced 
for  a  rivet,  was  exhibited  to  the 
Archaeological  Institute  in  18564 

The  fourth  class  of  spear- 
heads, those  with  openings  in 
the  blade,  may  again  be  sub- 
divided into  those  in  which 
the  openings  appear  to  have 
served  as  loops  for  attaching 
the  blade  to  the  shaft,  and 
those  in  which  these  apertures 
seem  to  have  been  mainly 
intended  for  ornament,  or  pos- 
sibly for  diminishing  weight. 

Of  the  former  kind  appear 
to  be  those  which  have  merely 
two  small  slits  in  the  lower 

*  Ayr  and  Wigton  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  13. 
t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  214. 
%  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  296. 


Fig.  411.— Knockans. 


332 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LAXCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.   XIV 


part  of  the  blade,  such  as  would  seem  adapted  for  the  insertion 
of  a  cord.  These  holes  are  usually  protected  by 
projections  rising  from  the  blade  on  the  outer  side 
of  the  holes. 

A  fine  spear-head  in  my  own  collection  thus  per- 
forated, found  near  Lurgan,  Co.  Armagh,*  is  shown  in 
Fig.  412.  It  is  24  inches  in  length,  and  3J  inches  in 
extreme  breadth. 

The  openings  are  about  17  inches  from  the  point. 
An  Irish  friend  has  suggested  that  they  were  for  the 
reception  of  poison,  but  after  the  blade  had  penetrated 
seventeen  inches  into  the  human  body  such  an  use  of 
poison  would  probably  be  superfluous. 

A  spear-head  of  the  same  form  (19£  inches)  was 
found  on  the  hill  of  Rosele,  Duff  us,  Morayshire,f  and 


Fig.  412.— Lurgan. 


Fig.  413.— Ireland. 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  65.     I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  use  of 
this  block. 

+  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  413  ;  "Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  21. 


WITH   FLANGES    AT   THE    SIDE    OF   THE    OPENINGS. 


333 


is  now  in  the  Elgin  Museum.  Another,  broken,  "but  still  10£  inches  long, 
was  found  with  a  rapier-shaped  blade  at  Corbridge,  Northumberland.* 
A  broken  specimen  was  found  in  the  Isle  of  Portland,  f 

A  spear-head  (10  inches)  with  small  openings  in  the  blade  was  found, 
with  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  rapiers,  bracelets,  and  a  ferrule,  at 
Wallington,  Northumber- 
land, and  is  in  the  pos- 
session of  Sir  Charles 
Trevelyan. 

An  "eyed"  spear-head 
22  inches  long  was  found 
in  the  Thames  near 
Datchet,^  hut  whether  it 
was  of  this  or  some  other 
type  I  cannot  say.  One 
(9  inches)  with  two  holes 
at  the  base  of  the  leaf 
above  the  ferrule  was 
found  near  Speen,  Berks.  § 

A  broader  form  (13£ 
inches)  from  Ireland  is 
engraved  by  Wilde  (Fig. 
365),  and  another  broader 
still  is  shown  in  my  Fig. 
413.  This  has  a  rivet-hole 
on  the  front  of  the  socket, 
as  well  as  the  holes  in  the 
blade.  This  is  also  in  the 
Dublin  Museum. 

In  some  instances  the 
blade  is  very  much  shorter 
in  proportion  to  the 
length  of  the  socket,  as 
will  be  seen  in  Fig.  414, 
the  original  of  which  was 
found  in  the  county  of 
Antrim,  and  is  now  in 
Canon  Greenwell's  collec- 
tion. 

A  remarkably  fine  Eng- 
lish example  of  the  same 
class  is  shown  in  Fig.  415. 
This  specimen  was  found 
in  the  Thames,  and  is  now 
in  the  British  Museum.  The  small  projecting  flanges  at  the  side  of  the 
holes  in  the  blade  are  very  strongly  marked,  and  form  circular  discs 
when  seen  with  the  edge  of  the  spear-head  towards  the  spectator. 

The  simplest  of  the  forms,  in  which  the  holes  in  the  blade  appear  to  be 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  363. 
t  Ibid.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  49. 
t  Arch,  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  89. 
I  Ibid.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  250. 


Fig.  415.— Thames. 


334 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xiv. 


for  ornament  rather  than  use,  is  that  in  which  there  are  two  circular  or 
oval  holes  through  the  blade,  one  on  either  side  of  the  midrib  containing 
the  socket.  The  spear-head  shown  in  Fig.  416  was  found  near  Naworth 
Castle,  Cumberland,  in  1870,  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Green- 


Fig.  417.— Blakehope. 


Fig.  418.— WMttingham.    J 


well.  In  general  form  it  resembles  the  type,  Fig.  381.  It  is  provided 
with  a  rivet-hole  through  the  socket. 

Some  Italian  spear-heads  have  two  circular  holes  in  the  blade,  but 
nearer  the  base. 

In  the  spear-head  shown  in  Fig.  417  there  is  no  trace  of  a  rivet-hole 
in  the  socket,  the  end  of  which,  however,  is  broken,  and  the  two  oval 
orifices  in  the  blade  are  placed  one  somewhat  below  the  other.  This 


WITH   LUNATE    OPENINGS   IN    THE    BLADE.  335 

specimen  is  in  Canon  Greenwell's  collection,  and  was  found  at  Blakehope, 
Northumberland. 

The  more  truly  characteristic  spear-heads  of  this  class  have  two 
crescent-shaped  or  lunate  openings,  one  on  each  side  of  the  mid- 
rib containing  the  socket,  which  thus  is 
made,   as    it    were,    to   reappear    in    the 
middle    of  the  blade.      There  is  usually 
a  rivet-hole  in  the  projecting  part  of  the 
socket   below   the    blade,    so    that   these 
openings  must  be  regarded  as  ornamental, 
or  else  as  intended  to  diminish  the  weight 
of  the  weapon. 

The  original  of  Fig.  418  was  found  about 
1847,  near  Whittingham,  Northumberland,* 
in  company  with  some  other  spear-heads  and 
two  swords,  and  is  now  in  the  possession  of 
Lord  Eavensworth.  The  surface  of  the  blade 
is  ornamented  by  being  worked  into  steps  or 
terraces,  and  the  socket  by  bands  of  parallel 
lines. 

A  rather  longer  specimen  was  found,  to- 
gether with  a  plain  leaf-shaped  spear-head 
and  five  socketed  celts,  at  Winmarleigh,  near 
Garstang,  Lancashire.!  By  the  kindness  of 
the  curators  of  the  Warrington  Museum  I  am 
enabled  to  give  it  as  Fig.  419.  It  is  19£ 
inches  long.  There  are  small  ridges  by  the 
side  of  the  midrib  and  round  the  margin  of 
the  openings. 

Another  like  it,  but  only  15 £  inches  long, 
was  found  with  a  socketed  celt  near  Middle- 
ham,  Yorkshire. 

Some  fragments  of  spear-heads  of  this  cha- 
racter were  found  with  other  bronze  anti- 
quities in  Duddingston  Loch,  Edinburgh.}: 

The  same  form  has  occurred  in  Ireland. § 
A  fine  example  (14  inches)  from  a  hoard  at 
Dowris,  King's  County,  ||  is  in  the  British 
Museum. 

A  spear-head  of  this  type,  about  8  inches  

long,  is  in  the  Boucher  de  Perthes  Collection  Fig.  419.— Winmarleigh. 

at  Abbeville. 

A  spear-head  smaller  than  Fig.  419,  but  of  the  same  general  character,  is 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  429. 

t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  234;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  158. 

J  Grose's  "  Treat,  on  Anc.  Armour,"  1786,  pi.  Ixi.  5. 

§  Vallancey,  "  Coll.  Hib.,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xi.  7. 

||  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  16. 


336 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAI\  XIV. 


shown  in  Fig.  420.  It  was  found  in  Bur- 
well  Fen,  Cambridge,  about  1869.  There 
is  a  double  bead  along  each  side  of  the 
midrib,  and  the  blade  is  in  two  steps 
or  terraces.  Around  the  crescent- 
shaped  opening  the  beading  is  grained 
or  milled  transversely.  A  projection 
is  carried  down  along  the  socket  from 
the  blade,  so  as  to  allow  the  rivet-hole 
to  be  made  in  it.  The  socket  extends 
to  within  1£  inches  of  the  point. 

A  spear-head  of  nearly  the  same 
size,  with  the  openings  somewhat 
smaller,  but  ornamented  in  a  similar 
manner,  was  found  with  celts,  pal- 
staves, gouges,  swords,  scabbards,  &c., 
at  Guilsfield,  Montgomeryshire,*  in 
1862.  Another,  broken,  was  found  at 
the  same  time.  Another  was  in  the 
hoard  at  Little  Wenlock,  Stafford- 
shire,! but  does  not  appear  to  have 
been  ornamented.  There  was  a  frag- 
ment of  another,  plain,  in  the  Broad- 
ward  J  find. 

In  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edin- 
burgh are  some  spear-heads  of  this 
character,  with  the  openings  on  the 
blade  rather  longer  in  proportion. 
One  was  found  in  the  bottom  of 
a  cairn  at  Highfield,  TJrray,  near 
Dingwall,  Eoss-shire.§  Others  were 
found  in  Roxburghshire  and  Stirling- 
shire. 

Some  of  the  spear-heads  of  this  type 
which  have  been  found  in  Ireland  are 
highly  ornamented.  A  very  fine  speci- 
men given  by  Wilde  (Fig.  374)  has 
several  mouldings  with  a  kind  of  cable 
pattern  upon  them.  Others  have  cir- 
cular perforations  in  addition  to  the 
lunate  openings  ;  and  in  one  instance 
the  socket  is  decorated  with  bands  and 
vertical  lines  (Wilde,  Fig.  372). 

A  small  lance-head  from  Jelabugy, 
Eussia,  ||  with  comparatively  large 
crescent-shaped  openings  in  the  blade, 
has  been  figured  by  Worsaae. 

The  cut  for  Fig.  421  is  kindly  lent 
me  by  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 


*  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  217,  fig.  8  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  251. 
t  Harfshorne's  "  Salop.  Ant.,"  p.  96.  J  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  352. 


§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  154. 


Mem.  desAnt.  du  Nord,  1872—7,  p.  115. 


BARBED    AT   THE    BASE. 


337 


Scotland.  The  original,  1 9  inches  long,  was  found  with  a  bronze  sword 
at  Denhead,  Cxipar- Angus,  Forfarshire,*  and  has  unfortunately  been 
somewhat  broken.  As 
will  be  seen,  there  are 
ten  circular  holes,  be- 
sides two  long  cres- 
cents. The  socket  is 
said  by  Professor 
Daniel  Wilson  to  con- 
tain a  thin  rod  or  core 
of  iron,  which  was 
inserted  in  the  mould 
to  strengthen  this  un- 
usually large  weapon ; 
but  what  seemed  to 
Dr.  Wilson  to  be  an 
iron  rod  is  really  a 
piece  of  wood  that 
has  been  recently  in- 
serted when  the  spear- 
head was  mended. 

In  the  last  class 
into  which  these 
weapons  are  here 
divided,  are  placed 
those  which  are 
barbed  at  the  base 
of  the  blade,  or  in 
very  rare  instances 
are  square  at  that 
part. 

A  good  typical  ex- 
ample (10iV  inches) 
is  shown  in  Fig.  422, 
from  an  original  found 
at  Speen,  Berks. f  It 
is  very  heavy,  weigh- 
ing 11  £  ozs.  troy,  or 
more  than  |  Ib.  avoir- 
dupois. 


Fig.  421.— Denhead. 


Fig.  4-^.— Speen 


Another  of  the  same  size,  but  lighter  (8  ozs.),  was  found  in  the  Severn, 
near  Worcester .| 

*  Wilson's  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  391;  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  23  ;  "  Catal.  Mus. 
Arch.  Inst.  Ed.,"  p.  23. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S..  vol.  v.  p.  404,  pi.  iii.  11;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi. 
p.  322,  pi.  xxvi.  4. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  187 ;  vol.  iii.  p.  354 ;  "  Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  vi.  26  ;  Allies, 
"Wore.,"  p.  30;  "Arch.  Inst.,"  York  vol.,  pi.  v.  4. 


338  SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIV. 

Another  (lOf  inches),  found  in  the  Plaistow  Marshes,  Essex,  and  now 
in  the  British  Museum,  has  a  rivet  of  bronze  2f  inches  in  length  still  in 
the  rivet-hole.  Curiously  enough  this  long  rivet  appears  to  be  a  speciality 
of  this  class  of  weapons.  Some  of  this  type,  together  with  some  fragments 
twisted  and  adhering  together  as  if  partially  molten,  were  found  in  the 
Thames  at  Kingston,*  and  in  one  of  them  was  the  bronze  rivet.  These 
are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  Some  broken  barbed  spear-heads  of 
larger  size  (about  14  inches),  also  with  the  rivets  still  in  position,  were 
found  with  bronze  ferrules  at  a  spot  called  "Bloody  Pool,"  South  Brent, 
Devon.f 

Another  (7  inches),  found  at  Pendoylan,  near  Cardiff,  Glamorganshire,! 
has  an  oval  socket  pierced  on  one  side  for  a  rivet,  which,  however,  is 
wanting. 

Canon  Greenwell,  F.B.S.,  possesses  an  example  much  like  that  from 
Speen  (lOf  inches)  found  in  Yorkshire,  near  the  river  Humber. 

In  the  Broadward  find  §  (Shropshire)  were  several  spear-heads  of  this 
type,  mostly  retaining  their  bronze  rivets.  One  of  them,  about  6  inches 
long  and  3  inches  broad,  has  the  base  of  the  blade  at  right  angles  to  the 
socket,  and  not  sloping  downwards.  Several  bronze  ferrules  were  included 
in  the  hoard.  What  appears  to  have  been  a  discovery  of  nearly  the  same 
character  took  place  in  a  bog  on  a  farm  called  the  Wrekin  Tenement,  || 
also  in  Shropshire,  where  a  celt,  a  small  number  of  swords,  and  about 
one  hundred  and  fifty  fragments  of  spear-heads  were  found.  They  are 
described  as  being  for  the  most  part  about  8  inches  in  length,  and  having 
rivets  of  bronze  through  the  sockets.  I  have  not  met  with  the  type  in 
Scotland  or  Ireland. 

It  has  been  suggested  that  these  weapons  were  fishing  spears,  and 
certainly  their  barbed  form,  so  distinct  from  that  of  the  more 
common  spear-heads,  raises  a  presumption  that  they  were  intended 
for  some  special  purpose.  It  appears  to  me,  however,  as  it  already 
has  done  to  others,  that  such  weapons  are  too  clumsy  to  have  been 
used  for  the  capture  of  fish  of  any  ordinary  size,  and  would  have 
made  sad  havoc  even  of  a  forty-pound  salmon.  If  they  were  used 
for  the  chase  at  all,  it  is  more  probable  that  they  were  intended  for 
attacking  large  four-footed  game,  such  as  wild  oxen,  either  by 
thrusting  or  darting,  and  that  the  weapons  were  left  in  the  wound, 
the  shafts  encumbering  the  animal  in  its  flight.  If,  as  would 
probably  be  the  case,  these  got  broken  by  the  animal,  the  long 
rivets  were  well  adapted  for  being  removed  so  as  to  allow  of  the 
broken  shaft  being  taken  out,  and  would  again  serve  to  retain  a 
new  one. 

Mention  has  already  been  made  of  ferrules  having  been  frequently 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  125. 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  84 ;  vol.  xviii.  p.  160. 
|  Ibid.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  357;  vol.  xviii.  p.  161. 
§  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  pp.  339,  347. 
||  Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  464. 


FERRULES   FOR   SPEAR-SHAFTS. 


339 


discovered  in  company  with  ordinary  spear-heads  ;  and  from  this 
fact,  and  the  size  and  character  of  the  ferrules,  the  inference  has, 
with  much  probability,  been  drawn  that  they  served  to  tip  the  lower 
ends  of  the  shafts  of  spears  and  lances. 

The  illustrations  given  in  Figs.  423  and  424  will  serve  to  show 
the  usual  character  of  these  objects.  They  vary  in  length  from 
about  16  inches  down  to  8  inches,  and  are 
about  I;  inch  or  less  in  diameter.  They  are 
not  made  from  a  flat  piece  of  metal  turned 
over,  but  are  cast  in  one  piece,  having  been 
very  carefully  "cored."  The  metal,  espe- 
cially near  the  mouth,  is  very  thin,  and  there 
is  usually  a  small  hole  nearer  this  end  than 
the  other  to  allow  of  a  pin  or  rivet  being 
inserted  to  keep  the  ferrule  on  the  shaft. 

The  original  of  Fig.  423  (8|-  inches)  was 
found  with  spear-heads  and  other  articles  at 
Nettleham,  near  Lincoln,  and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.* 

One  14  inches  long,  bluntly  pointed  at  the 
base,  was  found  in  the  Thames,  near  London, 
and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  It  has  a 
portion  of  the  wooden  shaft  inside,  which  ap- 
pears to  be  of  beech.  The  hole  for  the  pin  is 
still  visible  in  the  wood,  but  the  pin  has 
perished.  It  may  have  been  made  of  horn. 

Fig.  424  is  on  the  scale  of  one-fourth,  the 
original  being  14  inches  long.  It  was  found 
with  eleven  others,  varying  in  length  from  10 
to  16  inches,  and  with  spear-heads  and  other 
articles,  at  Ghiilsfield,  Montgomeryshire.! 

Another  ferrule  (9£  inches)  was  found,  with 
spear-heads,  socketed  celts,  &c.,  near  Notting- 
ham. | 

Four  such  (about  7  inches)  were  found,  with 
spear- heads,  &c.,  at  Bloody  Pool,  South  Brent, 
Devon.  § 

Canon  Greenwell  has  a  specimen  from  Antrim 
(9J  inches),  the  end  of  which  is  worn  obliquely,  as  if  by  trailing  on  the 
ground.     It  has  a  single  rivet-hole. 

A  very  long  ferrule  of  this  kind  (14£  inches),  but  with  a  small  disc  at 
the  base,  is  in  the  Museum  at  Nantes.  It  was  found  in  the  bed  of  the 
Loire. 

*  Arch.  Journ.y  vol.  xviii.  p.  160.  I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Franks  for  the  use  of  this 
cut. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  260 ;  vol.  v.  p.  422  ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x. 
p.  214  ;  "  Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  437. 

%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  332.  §  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  84. 

z  2 


Fig.  423.  Fig.  424. 

Nettleham.    1    Guilsfleld. 


340  SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIV. 

A  shorter  form,  somewhat  expanding  towards  the  base,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  425.  This,  together  with  three  others,  none  more  than  4J  inches 
long,  was  found,  with  spear-heads,  &c.,  at  Pant-y-maen,  near  Glancych.* 

In  the  Broadward  find  f  were  six  tubes,  varying  in  length  from  6  to 
2  inches,  of  which  one  only  was  of  this  type.  Some  were  so  small  that 
the  diameter  did  not  exceed  £  inch. 

A  small  ferrule  of  this  kind  was  in  the  hoard  found  at  Beddington, 
near  Croydon,^  and  part  of  one  in  that  of  Wickham  Park.  The  latter  is 
now  in  the  British  Museum. 

What  appears  to  be  a  ferrule  of  this  kind,  but  more  widely  expanded 
at  the  end,  like  Fig.  425,  is  described  in  Gordon's  "Itinerarium  Septen- 
trionale  "  §  as  "a  Roman  tuba,  or  trumpet." 

Another  of  these  expanded  ferrules  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Cambridge 
Antiquarian  Society.  || 

In  the  Fulbourn  find  *[f  there  were  two  ferrules  expanding  at  the  base 
to  about  2  inches  in  diameter,  which  were  regarded  by  Dr.  Clarke  as 
having  been  the  feet  of  two  spears.  He  points  out  that  similar  feet  for 
spears  may  be  seen  represented  on  Greek  vases.**  The  oupt'axos  or 
a-avpan-qp  of  Homer  ff  appears  to  have  been  more  susceptible  of  being 
driven  into  the  ground.  This  point  at  the  base  was  sometimes  used  for 
fighting  when  the  spear-head  proper  was  broken. 

Among  the  African  tribes  on  the  shores  of  the  Gambia,  the  spears,  as 
Mr.  Syer  Cuming  JJ  has  pointed  out,  have  a  chisel-  or  celt-like  ferrule  at 
the  base  of  their  shafts ;  and  this  fashion  extends  all  across  Africa  to 
Madagascar,  §§  and  recurs  in  Borneo. 

Some  Danish  ferrules  ||  ||  present  the  same  peculiarity  of  being  chisel- 
like  at  the  base. 

Another  form,  more  spherical  at  the  base,  is  shown  in  Fig.  427,  copied 
from  the  Archaeological  Journal.^  The  original,  with  several  others,  was 
found  at  St.  Margaret's  Park,  Hereford.  The  socket  tapers  to  a  point 
1£  inches  from  the  extremity. 

A  nearly  similar  ferrule,  but  with  a  slight  cylindrical  projection  beyond  the 
spherical  part,  was  found  with  other  bronze  objects  at  Lanant,  Cornwall.*** 
A  kind  of  pointed  ferrule  of  a  nearly  square  section,  with  the  faces 
hollowed,  which  was  found  near  Windsor,  fff  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  not  improbably  belongs  to  a  later  date  than  the  Bronze  Period. 

In  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  are  several  ferrules, 
apparently  for  the  end  of  spear  shafts,  some  of  which  are  said  to  have  been 
found  with  spear-heads.  Many  of  these  have  ornaments  of  a  late  Celtic  JJJ 
character  upon  them.  Others §§§  appear  to  have  been  made  from  plates 
turned  over  and  soldered,  and  not  to  have  been  cast  hollow.  Both  of  these 
kinds  are  of  more  recent  date  than  the  Bronze  Age. 

*  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  221.  f  Ibid.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  353. 

J  Anderson's  "  Croydon  Preh.  and  Rom.,"  p.  11,  pi.  iii.  5. 

§  P.  116,  pi.  1.  7.  ||    Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  96. 

H  Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  56,  pi.  iv.  10,  11 ;  Skelton's  "  Meyrick's  Anc.  Arm.,"  pi.  xlvii.  12. 

**  Arch,  ubi  sup.,  "  Millin,  Peintures  de  Vases,"  tome  ii.  p.  25. 

ft  "  Iliad.,"  lib.  x.  153  ;  lib.  xiii.  443,  &c. 

H  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xv.  p.  235.          §§  "  Preh.  Cong.,"  Norwich  vol.,  p.  77. 

Illl  Woraaae,  "Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  191 ;  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Old.,"  pi.  B  1,  22,  23. 

HU  Vol.  xi.  p.  55.  ***  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  118. 

ttt  Arch.,  vol.  v.  pi.  viii.  15. 

HI  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  figs.  390,  391.  §f  §  Op.  eit.,  p.  517. 


CONTINENTAL    TYPES. 


341 


Tapering  ferrules  of  bronze  occur  in  Italy,  and  a  pointed  iron  ferrule, 
probably  belonging  to  a  barbed  javelin  of  Eoman  age,  was  found  in 
the  river  Witham,  near  Lincoln.* 

A  ferrule,  about  3  inches  long,  with  parallel  lines  engraved  round  it,  is 
in  the  Museum  at  Clermont  Ferrand.  Another,  more  conical,  is  in  that 
of  Narbonne.f  Some  with  expanded  button-like  ends  have  been  found 
in  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Savoy.  Several  ferrules,  some  of  them  very 
short,  were  found  with  bronze  spear-heads  at  Alise  Ste.  Eeine  (Cote  d'0r).| 


Fig.  425.—  Glancych. 


Fig.  426.—  Fulbourn. 


Fig.  427.— Hereford. 


Others,  some  of  them  ornamented,  formed  part  of  the  great  Bologna 
hoard. 

A  ferrule  was  found  with  a  bronze  spear-head,  between  23  and  24 
inches  long,  in  the  Alban  Necropolis,  and  is  figured  in  the  Ardweologia.^ 
Padre  Garrucci  regards  this  spear  as  neither  Greek,  nor  Etruscan,  nor 
Latin,  but  Celtic. 

Although  the  simple  leaf-shaped  spear-heads  from  the  British  Isles 
present  close  analogies  with  those  from  the  other  parts  of  Europe, 
yet  for  the  most  part  those  of  the  other  types,  with  loops  to  the 
sockets,  with  openings  in  the  blade,  or  of  the  barbed  class  last 
described,  present  peculiarities  of  their  own.  Several  of  these 
types  appear,  indeed,  to  have  been  evolved  in  Britain  or  in 
Ireland,  and  the  differences  they  exhibit  from  the  ordinary  conti- 
nental types  are  more  marked  than  in  any  other  class  of  bronze 


*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  211. 
J  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  iv.  pi.  xiii. 


t  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  v.  pi.  ii.  25. 
§  Vol.  xlv.  p.  383. 


342 


SPEAR-HEADS,    LANCE-HEADS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIV 


weapons.  Though  loops  are  such  a  common  adjunct  to  the  socketed 
celts  of  other  countries,  yet  looped  palstaves  are  comparatively 
rare  abroad.  At  the  same  time,  as  will  have  been  seen,  hardly  any 
examples  of  looped  spear-heads  from  foreign  countries  can  be  cited, 
while  in  Britain,  and  more  especially  in  Ireland,  they  are  verv 
abundant.  This  fact,  in  whatever  way  it  is  to  be  accounted  for, 
affords  a  most  conclusive  argument  against  assigning  a  Roman 
origin  for  our  bronze  weapons ;  a  looped  spear-head,  so  far  as  I 
am  aware,  never  having  been  discovered  in  Italy,  and  but  very 
rarely  even  in  Gaul.  The  spear-heads  with  the  small  apertures 
in  the  blade  appear  also  to  be  of  an  indigenous  type. 

Some  of  the  iron  spear-heads  from  Hallstatt  and  elsewhere  have 
been  made  in  imitation  of  those  in  bronze,  and  have  been  welded 
along  the  whole  length  of  their  sockets  in  a  manner  which  dis- 
plays the  highest  skill  in  the  smiths.  But,  unlike  the  iron 
palstaves  and  socketed  celts,  none  of  the  spear-heads  are  provided 
with  a  loop.  In  later  times  the  sockets  of  the  iron  spear-heads 
were  left  with  an  open  slit  along  them,  a  method  of  manufacture 
which  produced  an  equally  serviceable  weapon,  and  involved  far 
less  trouble. 

As  to  the  position  in  time  which  spear-heads  occupy  in  the 
Bronze  Age,  it  is  probable  that  it  is  towards  the  close  rather  than 
the  beginning  of  that  period.  Not  only  are  spear-heads  almost,  if 
not  quite,  absent  from  our  barrows,  but  the  skill  involved  in 
producing  implements  so  thin  and  so  truly  cored  could  only  have 
been  acquired  after  long  practice  in  casting.  The  objects  to  be 
considered  in  the  next  chapter  are  also  of  comparatively  late 
date. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND   HELMETS. 

HAVING  now  described  the  various  weapons  of  offence  of  which 
in  early  times  bronze  formed  the  material,  it  will  be  well  to 
examine  the  arms  of  defence  fabricated  from  the  same  metal,  and 
presumably  of  the  same  or  nearly  the  same  age. 

The  shields  first  in  use  in  Britain  were  probably  formed  of 
perishable  materials,  such  as  wicker-work,  wood,  or  hide,  like  those 
of  many  savage  tribes  of  the  present  day  ;  and  it  can  only  have 
been  after  a  long  acquaintance  with  the  use  of  bronze  that  plates 
could  have  been  produced  of  such  size  as  those  with  which  some 
of  the  ancient  shields  and  bucklers  found  in  this  country  were 
covered.  They  would  appear,  therefore,  to  belong  to  quite  the 
close  of  the  Bronze  Age,  if  not  to  the  transitional  period  when  iron 
was  coming  into  use.  There  are,  indeed,  several  bronze  coverings 
of  shields  of  elongated  form,  such  as  those  from  the  river  Witham* 
and  from  the  Thames,  f  with  decorations  upon  them,  in  which  red 
enamel  plays  a  part,  that  have  been  found  associated  with  the 
iron  swords  of  what  Mr.  Franks  has  termed  the  Late  Celtic  Period. 
Those,  however,  which  appear  to  have  a  better  claim  to  a  place  in 
these  pages  are  of  a  circular  form. 

That  which  I  have  shown  in  Fig.  428  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  and  has  already  been  figured  in  the  Archceologia,+  and 
described  by  Mr.  Gage.  It  was  dredged  up  from  what  appears  to 
have  been  the  ancient  bed  of  the  river  Isis,  near  Little  Witten- 
ham,  Berks,  not  far  from  the  Dyke  Hills,  near  Dorchester,  Oxon. 
It  is  about  13|  inches  diameter,  not  quite  circular  in  form,  though 

*  "Horse  Fer.,"  pi.  xiv. ;  Arch.,  vol.  xxiii.  p.  97;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  144; 
Skelton's  "Meyrick's  Anc.  Arm.,"  pi.  xlvii.  7. 

t  "  Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  xv. ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Joum.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  330. 

JVol.xxvii.pl.  xxii.  p.  298;  "The  Barrow  Diggers,"  pi.  ii.  1,  p.  73;  AVorsaae, 
"  Prim.  Ant.  of  Denm.,"  Eng.  ed.,  p.  32.  I  am  indebted  to  Messrs.  James  Parker  &  Co. 
for  the  use  of  this  block. 


344 


SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND   HELMETS. 


[CHAP.  xv. 


probably  intended  so  to  be.  The  raised  bosses  have  all  been 
wrought  in  the  metal  with  the  exception  of  four,  two  of  which 
form  the  rivets  for  the  handle  across  the  umbo,  and  two  others 
serve  as  the  rivets  or  pivots  for  two  small  straps  or  buttons  of 
bronze  on  the  inner  side  of  the  buckler.  Such  buttons  occur  on 
several  other  examples,  but  it  is  difficult  to  determine  the  exact 
purpose  which  they  served.  From  the  pains  taken  in  this  instance 
to  conceal  the  heads  of  these  pivots  on  the  outside,  by  making 
them  take  the  form  and  place  of  bosses,  it  would  appear  that  they 
were  necessary  adjuncts  of  the  shield,  and  possibly  in  some  way 
connected  with  a  lining  for  it.  Such  a  lining  can  hardly  have 


/ .  F,.t 


Tig.  428.— Little  Wittenham. 


been  of  wood,  or  many  rivet  or  pin  holes  would  have  been  necessary 
for  securing  the  metal  to  it.  It  may  be  that  a  lining  of  hide  was 
moulded  while  wet  to  the  form  of  the  shield,  and  that  these 
buttons  served  to  keep  it  in  place  when  dry.  In  one  case  *  it  is 
said  that  some  fibrous  particles  resembling  leather  still  remain 
attached  to  the  inside  of  the  shield.  In  general  the  metal  is  so 
thin  that  without  some  lining  these  bucklers  would  have  afforded 
but  a  poor  defence  against  the  stroke  of  a  sword,  spear,  or  arrow. 
In  this  Little  Wittenham  example,  and  possibly  in  some  others,  it 
is  probable  that  the  shield  itself  was  larger  than  the  bronze  plate. 
Another  view  is  that  these  buttons  fastened  a  strap  for  carrying 
the  shield  when  either  in  or  out  of  use. 

*  Journ.  E.  H.  and  A.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  4th  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  488. 


SHIELDS   WITH    CONCENTRIC    RIBS.  345 

Another  buckler,  in  Lord  Londesborough's  collection,  14  inches  in 
diameter,  with  two  circles  of  small  bosses  divided  by  a  raised  band, 
is  stated  to  have  been  found  with  a  large  bronze  spear-head  at  Athenry,* 
Co.  Gralway.  Two  of  the  bosses  of  the  inner  circle  are  the  heads  of 
rivets  for  securing  the  handle.  A  much  smaller  buckler,  or  centre  of 
a  buckler,  only  9£  inches  in  diameter  (also  with  two  rings  of  bosses), 
presumably  found  in  the  Isis,f  near  Eynsham  Bridge,  is  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  It  has  a  slightly  conical  boss,  surrounded 
by  a  circle  of  smaller  bosses  between  two  raised  ribs.  There  is  also  a 
raised  rib  round  the  margin  formed  by  turning  over  the  metal  towards 
the  outer  face.  In  the  outer  ring  of  bosses  two  are  missing  at  the  places 
where,  no  doubt,  were  formerly  the  rivets  of  the  buttons  or  loops. 

A  shield  in  the  British  Museum  (21  inches),  found  in  the  Thames,  has 
four  rows  of  bosses,  about  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  the  same  number  of 


Fig.  429.— Harlech.        8 

raised  rings.  The  inner  set  of  bosses  abuts  on  the  umbo.  There  is  a 
marginal  rim  about  an  inch  beyond  the  outer  ring.  This  shield  appears 
to  have  had  two  buttons,  which  as  usual  are  nearly  in  a  line  with  one 
of  the  rivets  which  fasten  the  handle.  One  of  these  loops  remains  secured 
by  a  large-headed  rivet  matching  the  bosses.  There  is  at  least  one  hole 
through  the  shield  which  may  have  resulted  from  a  spear  thrust. 

The  rivets  which  secure  the  handle  have  heads  made  in  imitation  of 


In  some  the  decoration  consists  of  a  series  of  concentric  ribs  or  beads, 
as  in  that  found  in  a  peat  moss  near  Harlech,  ;£  which  is  shown  in  Fig. 
429.  Its  diameter  is  22  inches.  The  heads  of  the  four  rivets  for 

*  "Horse  Fer.,"  p.  167,  pi.  xi.  1 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  187. 

t  Op.  cit.,  p.  167,  pi.  xi.  3 ;  "  Catal.  of  Ants.,  &c.,  of  the  Soc.  Ant.,"  p.  17. 

J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.  p.  77,  whence  the  cut  is  copied;  "Hor.  Fer.,"  p.  167, pi.  xi.  4. 


346 


SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND    HELMETS. 


[CHAP.  xv. 


holding  the  handle  and  the  two  buttons  are  in  this  case  visible  in  the 

spaces  between  the  ribs. 

Another  of  the  same  pattern  was  discovered  in  company  with  that 

shown  in  Fig.  430,  in  Coveney  Fen,*  near  Ely,  and  is  now  in  the  Museum 

of  the  Cambridge  Antiquarian  Society.     The  metal  of  which  it  is  formed 

has  been  found  on  analysis  to  contain — 

Copper 87-55 

Tin 11-72 

Nickel      .         .  0-40 

99-67 

The  presence  of  the  nickel  is  probably  due  to  impurities  in  the  ore  from 
which  the  copper  was  extracted. 


Fig.  430. — Coveney. 


The  second  Coveney  shield  is  shown  in  Fig.  430.f  The  ornament  in 
this  instance  is  of  a  very  peculiar  character,  and  appears  to  represent 
two  snakes,  one  long  and  the  other  short,  twisted  about  into  a  symmetrical 
pattern.  They  are  of  the  ampJiisbaena  kind,  with  a  head  at  each  end.  The 
two  outermost  ribs,  one  of  them  at  the  margin,  are  continuous.  The 
rivets  for  holding  the  handle  are  visible,  as  are  also  three  on  either  side 
connected  with  the  inner  buttons,  that  in  this  case  have  been  regarded  as 

*  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  p.  167;  Trans.  Camb.  Ant.  Soc.,  vol.  ii.  p.  12. 
t  Copied  from  Publ.  Camb.  Ant.  Soc.,  vol.  ii.  Misc.  pi.  3. 


SHIELDS    WITH    CONCENTRIC    RINGS   OF    KNOBS. 


347 


loops  by  which  the  shield  was  suspended.  The  buttons  have  a  small 
hole  through  them,  as  will  be  seen  by  Fig. 
431.  In  front  of  each  is  a  pair  of  small  coni- 
cal studs,  of  which  the  purpose  can  now 
hardly  be  determined.  Mr.  Goodwin  thought 
that  they  might  be  intended  to  prevent  a 
thong  which  passed  beneath  the  buttons  from 
slipping  away  from  them. 

The  type  of  shield,  of  which  the  largest  rig.  43i.-coveney.  * 

number  has  been  found  in  the  British  Isles,  is  that  having  a 


Fig.  432.— Beith. 


348 


SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND    HELMETS. 


[CHAP.  xv. 


series  of  concentric  rings,  from  about  twelve  to  thirty  in  number, 
and  between  them  circles  of  small  studs. 

A  very  fine  example  of  this  kind  of  shield  is  preserved  in  the  Museum 
of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  London,*  and  is  shown  on  the  scale  of 
one-sixth,  together  with  some  of  its  details  on  a  larger  scale,  in  Figs.  432, 


Fig.  433.— Beith. 


433,  and  434,  for  the  use  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  A}-r- 
shire  and  Wigtonshire  Archaeological  Association,  f 

A  figure  of  the  shield  has  been  given  by  Professor  Daniel  "Wilson,  J 
but  the  illustrations  here  given  will  convey  a  much  more  accurate 
impression  of  its  character  and  details. 

Though  there  is  some  discrepancy  as  to  measurement,  there  is  little 
doubt  that  this  is  the  shield  found  about  the  year  1780  in  a  peat  moss  on 
a  farm  called  Luggtonrigge,  in  the  parish  of  Beith,  Ayrshire,  and  pre- 
sented to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  by  Dr.  Ferris,  §  who  was  informed 

*  "Catal.  Mus.  Soc.  Ant.,"  p.  16. 

t  See  "  Ayr.  and  Wigt.  Coll.,"  vol.  i.  p.  66,  where  I  have  described  this  shield. 


"  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  1st  ed.,  p.  267  ;  2nd  ed.,  vol. 
:  Minute  Book  of  Soc.  Ant.,"  vol.  xxiv.  p.  147. 


p.  397- 


SHIELDS  FOUND  IN  SCOTLAND.  349 

that  four  or  five  others  of  the  same  kind  were  discovered  at  the  same 
time.  A  portion  of  the  margin  of  the  shield  is  shown  of  the  full  size  in 
Fig.  433,  and  the  handle  across  the  inner  side  of  the  boss  on  the  scale  of 
one-half  in  Fig.  434.  These  figures  give  so  complete  an  idea  of  the 
original  that  it  seems  needless  to  enter  into  further  details.  It  is,  how- 
ever, well  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  handle  of  the  buckler, 
which  is  made  from  a  flat  piece  of  bronze,  is  rendered  more  convenient  to 
grasp,  and  at  the  same  time  strengthened,  by  its  sides  being  doubled 
over,  and  thus  made  to  present  a  rounded  edge.  It  is  secured  to  the 
shield  by  a  rivet  at  each  end.  About  midway  between  the  edge  of  the 
umbo  and  that  of  the  shield,  but  placed  so  that  one  of  the  rivets  of  the 
handle  is  in  the  same  line  and  midway  between  them,  have  been  two 
rivets,  each  fastening  a  short  button  like  those  on  the  Coveney  Fen  shield, 
of  which  at  present  only  one  remains.  The  rivet-hole  for  the  other  has 
been  closed  by  a  short  rivet. 


Fig.  434.— Beith.        £ 

Other  shields,  almost  identical  in  character,  have  likewise  been  found 
in  Scotland,  one  of  which,  by  the  kindness  of  the  Council  of  the  Society 
of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,  is  shown  in  Fig.  435,  on  the  scale  of  one-sixth. 
A  portion  of  the  margin  is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  436,  and  the  interior 
of  the  umbo  in  Fig.  437,  on  the  scale  of  one-fourth.  It  was  found  in  1837, 
together  with  another,  in  a  marshy  field  near  Yetholm,  Roxburghshire. 
These  shields  have  been  described  in  a  paper  by  the  late  Mr.  W.  T. 
McCulloch,*  of  some  of  whose  references  I  have  here  made  use. 

One  of  these  Yetholm  shields  is  23£  inches  in  diameter,  and  has  thirty 
concentric  rings  of  convex  knobs  alternating  with  projecting  circular 
ribs  or  beads  ;  the  other  measures  24  inches  across,  and  has  twenty-four 
rings  of  both  knobs  and  ribs.  In  the  centre  of  each  is  a  hollow  circular 
umbo  4  inches  in  diameter,  with  a  handle  riveted  across  it. 

Another  shield  of  the  same  character  was  found  at  Yetholm  f  in  1870, 
near  the  place  where  the  two  others  were  discovered.  It  is  22J  inches  in 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  165.  See  also  Tr.  JR.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Assoc.  of 
Ireland,  4th  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  487. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  viii.  p.  393. 


350 


SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND    HELMETS.  [CHAP.  XV. 


diameter,  with  twenty-nine  concentric  rings  alternating  with  the  usual 
small  knobs.     The  boss  is  3£  inches  in  diameter. 


Fig.  436.— Yetholm. 


Fig.  43". — Yetholm.        J 


SHIELDS   FOUND    IN    ENGLAND    AND    WALES.  351 

At  the  back  of  each  of  these  shields,  about  midway  between  the  centre 
and  the  rim,  are  the  usual  small  movable  tongues  of  bronze,  which  have 
been  supposed  to  serve  for  the  attachment  of  a  leather  strap  by  which  the 
shield  might  be  slung  round  the  body.  Mr.  Jeffrey,  F.S.A.  Scotland,  of 
Jedburgh,  who  described  this  third  shield,  has  pointed  out  that  there  is 
too  little  room  beneath  the  tongues  for  a  strap  of  any  kind. 

So  far  as  at  present  known  these  are  the  only  instances  of  bucklers 
of  this  kind  having  been  discovered  in  Scotland. 

In  England  and  Wales  several  such  have  been  found.  One  was  in  the 
Meyrick  Collection  *  at  Groodrich  Court,  and  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  It  is  about  26£  inches  in  diameter,  with  twenty  concentric 
circles  of  knobs  and  ribs  between,  and  is  in  all  respects  like  those  just 
described.  It  was  found  about  1804  in  a  turbary  near  Aberystwith, 
Cardiganshire.  It  has  had  the  usual  buttons,  one  of  which  remains. 

Another  example  f  of  the  kind  (25£  inches),  with  twenty-seven  con- 
centric rings,  was  also  in  the  Meyrick  Collection,  and  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  It  was  found  in  a  peat  moss  at  Moel  Sinbod,  near 
Capel  Curig,  Carnarvonshire.  It  has  one  of  the  usual  loops  and  the 
rivet  of  the  other.  Sir  Samuel  Meyrick  had  heard  of  another  shield, 
dug  up  near  Newcastle-on-Tyne,  which  the  owner,  wishing  to  gratify 
all  his  friends,  cut  up  like  a  cake,  and  sent  to  each  a  slice.  This  may  be 
the  shield  found  at  Broomyholme,  Chester-le-Street,  Durham,  of  which 
a  fragment  is  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Newcastle- 
on-Tyne. 

Another  now  in  the  possession  of  Sir  Edward  Blackett,  Bart.,  was 
found  near  Corbridge,  Northumberland. 

Fragments  J  of  two  other  shields  of  the  same  character  were  also 
found  in  Northumberland,  at  Ingoe,  in  the  parish  of  Stamfordham,  about 
two  miles  north  of  the  Eoman  wall.  They  were  originally  about  20  inches 
in  diameter,  and  like  so  many  others  were  discovered  during  draining 
operations. 

Another  buckler  of  the  same  character  was  found  in  the  Thames  §  at 
London,  and  passed  into  the  British  Museum  with  the  Koach  Smith 
Collection.  This  specimen  is  21^  inches  in  diameter,  and  has  eleven  rings 
of  the  small  bosses  upon  it  separated  by  concentric  ribs.  A  curious 
feature  in  this  shield  is  that  the  places  to  which  the  usual  little  buttons 
were  attached  have  been  neatly  cut  out,  leaving  triangular  holes.  There 
is  also  a  third  hole  of  the  same  kind.  In  one  place  also  there  is  a  hole 
through  the  shield,  such  as  might  have  been  produced  by  the  thrust  of 
a  bronze  spear.  Close  by  this  hole  is  a  clean  cut,  such  as  might  have 
been  made  by  a  sword.  The  plate  of  bronze  has  been  turned  over  on  to 
the  face,  so  as  to  form  the  outer  rim. 

A  circular  shield,  ||  with  twenty-six  concentric  rings  of  studs,  was  dredged 
up,  together  with  a  leaf-shaped  bronze  sword,  from  the  bed  of  the  Thames 
off  Woolwich  in  1830. 

A  thin  bronze  plate  from  the  Thames,  19  inches  in  diameter,  convex, 
and  with  small  knobs  round  the  margin,  is  in  the  Mayer  Collection  at 
Liverpool.  It  has  been  marked  with  the  hammer,  possibly  in  imitation 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xxiii.  p.  92 ;  "  Anc.  Arm.,"  by  Skelton,  vol.  i.  pi.  xlvii.  4. 
t  jirch.,  vol.  xxiii.  p.  95.  ^  A/rch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  157. 

§  "Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  ix.  168  ;  C.  Koach  Smith,  "Catal.  of  Lond.  Ant.,"  p.  80. 
||  C.  Roach  Smith,  ubi  sup. 


352  SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AXD    HELMETS.  [CHAP.  XV. 

of  basket-work,  and  has  been  mended  in  one  place  in  ancient  times.  It 
may  be  the  bottom  of  a  caldron,  and  not  a  shield. 

Another  buckler,  26  inches  in  diameter,  having  twelve  concentric  raised 
rings  with  the  usual  knobs  between  them,  is  also  said  to  have  been  found 
in  the  Thames*  between  Hampton  and  Walton,  in  September,  1864. 

In  draining  a  meadow  at  Bagley,f  about  five  miles  from  Ellesmere,  in 
Shropshire,  another  of  these  circular  bucklers  was  found.  This  is  23 
inches  in  diameter,  with  an  umbo  of  4  inches,  and  has  twenty-six  con- 
centric circles,  with  the  same  rings  of  knobs  between  them  as  on  the 
other  examples.  It  has  the  usual  holes  for  the  rivets  of  the  small  buttons. 

Another,  found  on  Burringham  Common,  J  Lincolnshire,  in  1843,  is 
26  inches  in  diameter,  with  an  umbo  of  4J  inches,  and  only  nineteen 
concentric  circles  with  intermediate  rings  of  knobs.  The  boss  of  this 
shield  is  conical  rather  than  hemispherical.  It  is  now  in  the  Museum  of 
the  Royal  Irish  Academy.  A  shield  of  this  kind  20£  inches  in  diameter, 
having  thirteen  concentric  circles  of  small  bosses  and  raised  rings  be- 
tween, was  found  at  Sutton  St.  Michael's,  Norfolk.§ 

In  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell  is  the  bronze  boss  of  a  shield 
nearly  5  inches  in  diameter,  probably  intended  for  the  centre  of  a  wooden 
buckler.  It  has  three  small  holes  for  nails  or  rivets  in  the  rim.  In  one 
place  there  is  a  square  hole,  apparently  made  by  a  thrust  from  a  spear. 
This  boss  was  found  at  Harwood,  Northumberland. 

Shields  like  Fig.  435,  with  several  concentric  rings  alternating  with 
small  knobs,  are  rare,  but  by  no  means  unknown  in  Ireland.  One  (27f 
inches  in  diameter)  was  found  in  a  bog  near  Ballynamona,||  Co.  Limerick, 
and  has  been  figured.  As  usual,  it  has  the  two  movable  loops  or  buttons 
at  the  back.  There  is  a  little  patch  of  bronze  over  a  small  irregular 
hole  in  the  shield,  such  as  an  arrow  or  a  javelin  would  make.  It  is 
soldered  on  with  a  metal  which  is  stated  to  be  bronze,  but  which  I 
imagine  must  be  some  more  fusible  alloy  of  copper.  This  shield  is  now 
in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  and  in  their  Proceedings  ^1  is 
stated  to  have  been  found  in  Lough  Gur,  Co.  Limerick,  but  this  must 
be  an  error. 

The  central  portion  of  a  bronze  shield,  including  the  umbo,  was  found 
at  Toome  Bar,  Lough  Neagh,  and  is  now  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
William  Gray,  of  Belfast. 

A  somewhat  doubtful  instance  has  been  recorded  of  the  remains  of  a 
bronze  shield  having  been  found  with  an  interment  in  a  barrow.  Sir  R. 
Colt  Hoare,  in  his  examination  of  the  Bush  Barrow,  Normanton,**  found 
a  skeleton  lying  from  S.  to  N.,  and  about  eighteen  inches  S.  of  the 
head  "several  brass  rivets  intermixed  with  wood,  and  some  thin  bits  of 
brass  nearly  decomposed.  These  articles  covered  a  space  of  twelve  inches 
or  more ;  it  is  probable,  therefore,  that  they  are  the  mouldered  remains 
of  a  shield."  Near  the  shoulders  lay  a  flanged  bronze  celt  like  Fig.  9. 
A  large  dagger  of  bronze,  and  what  Sir  Richard  calls  a  spear-head  of  the 
same  metal,  but  which  was  probably  a  dagger,  the  inlaid  hilt  (Fig.  289), 

*  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  518;  v.  p.  363  ;  Gent.  Mag.,  Dec.,  1865,  p.  771. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  200. 

%  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  395 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  200 ;  Proc. 
JRoy.  Irish  Acad.,  1874,  p.  277.  §  Arch.  Assoc.  Jour.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  165. 

|j  Journ.  Royal  Hist,  and  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  4th  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  118,  and  vol.  iv. 
p.  487.  See  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  480. 

IT  Vol.  x.  p.  155.  **  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  203. 


THE    DATE   OF    CIRCULAR   BUCKLERS.  353 

a  stone  hammer,  and  some  plates  of  gold  accompanied  this  interment. 
It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  more  is  not  known  of  the  real  character  of 
the  object  with  the  rivets,  but  their  presence  shows  that  it  could  not  have 
been  a  shield  such  as  those  here  described,  in  which  the  only  rivets  are 
those  securing  the  handle  and  the  movable  buttons. 

The  umbo  of  a  Late-Celtic  shield  was  among  the  objects  found  at  Polden 
Hill,*  Somersetshire. 

Some  wooden  bucklers  have  been  found  both  in  Scotland  f  and  Ireland, 
but  it  is  hard  to  determine  their  age. 

Mr.  Franks  J  has  already  remarked  that  bronze  shields  are  of  far  less 
common  occurrence  on  the  Continent  than  in  the  British  Isles.  He  cites 
three  from  the  Copenhagen  Museum,  §  one  of  which,  about  27  inches  in 
diameter,  has  five  concentric  ribs  round  the  boss  and  ten  sets  of  knobs  ; 
these,  however,  are  arranged  in  such  a  manner  as  to  leave  a  star  of  eight 
rays  of  smooth  metal  radiating  from  the  boss.  The  other  two  are  less 
like  the  British  in  character.  A  fine  shield  in  the  Stockholm  Museum, 
with  swan-like  figures  upon  it,  has  been  thought  to  have  been  imported 
from  Italy.  || 

One  found  near  Bingen,  on  the  Ehine,H  about  15£  inches  in  diameter, 
has  merely  four  raised  concentric  ribs.  There  are  two  small  bowed 
handles  secured  with  two  rivets,  each  in  about  the  same  position  as  the 
usual  button.  They  seem  certainly  intended  for  a  strap  to  pass  through 
them.  There  are,  however,  two  other  rivets  in  the  shield  to  which 
movable  buttons  may  possibly  have  been  attached. 

The  Italian  shields  mentioned  by  Mr.  Franks  are  of  a  different  type. 
One  in  the  British  Museum  (34  inches  in  diameter)  has  a  very  slight 
boss,  and  is  ornamented  with  concentric  bands  of  sphinxes  and  other 


As  has  already  been  observed,  it  is  somewhat  hard  to  judge  of 
the  date  of  these  bucklers.  I  am  not  aware  of  any  portions  of 
them  having  been  found  in  the  hoards  of  metal  in  which  fragments 
of  swords  frequently  occur.  Still  in  the  case  of  the  shield  dredged 
up  off  Woolwich  the  sword  which  accompanied  it  was  of  bronze, 
though  of  course  there  is  no  evidence  of  the  two  having  been  lost 
or  deposited  together.  The  whole  character,  however,  of  the 
ornamentation  and  workmanship  is,  I  think,  more  in  accordance 
with  the  Bronze  Age  than  with  the  Late  Celtic  or  Early  Iron 
Period,  though  the  shields  probably  belong  to  the  close  of  the 
Bronze  Period. 

Circular  bucklers,  or  targets,  no  doubt  remained  in  use  until  a 
considerably  later  date,  but  it  seems  probable  that  some  other 
material  than  a  thin  plate  of  bronze  was  used  for  their  manufac- 

*  Arch.,  Tol.  xiv.  p.  90.  pi.  xviii.  t  See  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  217. 

I  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  p.  166. 

§  Madsen,  "  Afbild.,"  vol.  ii.  pi.  xvii. ;  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.  B,  v.  ;  Worsaae 
"  Prim.  Ant.  of  Den.,"  Thorns'  Eng.  ed.,  p.  31. 

4"  Cong,  preh.,"  Bologna  vol.,  p.  294. 
Lindenschmit,  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorzeit,"  vol.  i.  Heft  xi.  Taf.  1,  4,  and  5. 
A  A 


354  SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND    HELMETS.  [CHAP.  XV. 

ture.  Professor  Daniel  Wilson*  remarks  that  on  the  gold  coins  of 
Tasciovamis,  Cunobeline,  and  others  of  our  native  rulers  contem- 
porary with  the  first  intercourse  with  Rome,  the  shields  borne  by 
the  warriors  are  either  long  and  double-pointed,  or,  if  round,  large 
and  disked,  and  of  very  different  construction  from  the  Luggton- 
rigge  shield.  On  one  coin  of  Cunobeline,  however  (Evans,  pi.  xii. 
14),  the  horseman  bears  a  circular  buckler,  which,  so  far  as  can  be 
judged  from  so  diminutive  a  representation  as  that  given  on  the 
coin,  would  be  about  2  feet  in  diameter.  On  two  small  gold  coins 
of  Verica,f  recently  published,  the  horseman  carries  a  target  of 
somewhat  larger  proportions.  Somewhat  smaller  circular  bucklers 
are  carried  by  the  horsemen  on  certain  Spanish  coins,  +  probably 
of  the  second  century  B.C.  One  of  these  shields  shows  four 
smaller  bosses,  arranged  in  cruciform  order  around  the  central 
boss ;  another  seems  to  be  plain  except  the  umbo  and  a  project- 
ing rim. 

This  buckler  is  no  doubt  the  Cetra,  or  Caetra  (/ratTpea,  Hesych.), 
in  use  among  the  people  of  Spain  and  Mauretania,  which  was 
usually  made  of  hide,  among  the  latter  people  sometimes  of  that 
of  the  elephant.  CaBsar  §  speaks  of  the  "cetratae  Hispaniae  cohortes," 
and  Tacitus  ||  mentions  the  Britons  as  armed  "  ingentibus  gladiis 
sine  mucrone  et  brevibus  cetris."  It  does  not  appear  that  the 
Romans  ever  earned  the  cetra,  which  has  been  by  Livy  compared 
to  the  pelta  of  the  Greeks  and  Macedonians.^]"  The  clipeus  appears 
to  have  been  larger  in  size,  and  to  have  been  held  on  the  arm 
and  not  by  the  handle  only. 

But  whatever  shields  may  have  been  in  use  in  this  country  at 
the  time  of  the  Roman  invasion,  I  am  inclined  to  refer  these 
circular  bucklers  to  a  somewhat  earlier  date,  as  already  in  Caesar's 
time  iron  was  fully  in  use  for  swords  and  for  cutting  purposes 
generally  ;  and,  as  has  already  been  observed,  the  shields  with 
which  the  early  iron  swords  are  found  are  of  a  different  form 
from  these.  As  is  the  case  with  bronze  swords,  such  bucklers  are 
never  found  with  interments,  and  those  discovered  seem  to  have 
been  lost  in  the  water,  or  hidden  in  bogs,  rather  than  buried  as 
accessories  for  the  dead. 

The  skill  requisite  for  the  production  of  such  bucklers  must 

*  "Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  2nd  ed.,  vol.  i.  p.  398. 

t  Num.  Chron.t  N.S.,  vol.  xvii.  pi.  x.  7  and  8. 

i  See  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  187. 

$  "  De  Bell.  Civ.,"  i.  39,  48.  ||  «  Agrio.,"  36. 

•5  See  Smith's  "Diet,  of  Ant.,"  s.  v.  Cetra. 


THE  DATE  OF  BRONZE  HELMETS.  355 

have  been  great,  and  the  appliances  at  command  by  no  means 
contemptible.  The  whole  of  the  work  is  repousse  and  wrought 
with  the  hammer,  and  not  improbably  the  original  sheet  of  bronze 
from  which  a  shield  was  made  was  considerably  less  in  diameter 
and  also  much  thicker  than  the  finished  shield.  To  produce  so 
large  a  casting  of  such  even  substance,  and  yet  so  thin,  would  I 
think  be  beyond  the  skill  of  most  modern,  and  probably  most 
ancient,  brass-founders  ;  and  moreover  there  is  no  appearance  on 
the  shields,  of  the  metal  having  been  cast  in  the  form  in  which 
it  now  appears. 

While  still  upon  the  subject  of  defensive  armour  it  will  be  well 
to  say  a  few  words  about  bronze  helmets,  though  there  is  good 
reason  to  believe  that  in  this  country  at  all  events  such  objects  do 
not  belong  to  the  Bronze  Age  properly  so-called.  Indeed  the 
earliest  known  bronze  helmets  in  some  other  countries,  such  as 
those  from  Assyria  and  Etruria,  appear  to  belong  to  a  time  when 
iron  was  already  in  use  in  those  countries.  The  date  of  an  Etrus- 
can helmet  of  bronze  preserved  in  the  British  Museum*  can  be 
determined  with  precision,  for  an  inscription  upon  it  proves  that 
it  was  offered  in  the  Temple  of  Zeus  at  Elis,  by  Hiero,  Tyrant 
of  Syracuse,  from  the  spoils  of  the  Etruscans  after  the  naval  battle 
of  Cumae,  which  took  place  in  B.C.  474.  It  is  of  simple  form 
with  a  brim  around  it.  Those  which  have  been  found  in  Styria 
and  Germanyf  are  in  some  cases  half  ovals  in  form,  sometimes 
with  a  knob  at  the  top,  without  any  rims  round  the  opening,  but 
with  a  certain  number  of  small  holes  for  the  attachment  of  cheek- 
pieces  or  appendages  of  other  kinds.  These  may  belong  to  a  true 
Bronze  Period.  Others,  like  those  from  Halls  tatt,+  have  rims  and 
even  ridges  for  crests. 

In  the  Salzburg  Museum  is  a  fine  helmet  without  a  rim,  but  with 
an  ornamented  ridge  and  cheek-pieces.  It  was  found,  with  twelve 
others  now  at  Vienna,  at  MattreyJ  between  Innsbruck  and  Brixen. 
One  of  these  bears  an  Etruscan  inscription  upon  it.  According  to 
Pliny,  "  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  Brixen  came  from  Etruria." 

Even  in  the  time  of  Severus,  the  Britons,  according  to  Herodian,!! 
made  no  use  of  helmets  or  cuirasses,  though  they  wore  an  iron 
collar  round  the  neck  and  an  iron  belt  round  the  body,  and  re 
garded  them  as  ornaments  and  signs  of  wealth. 

*  "  Horse  Ferales,"  p.  168,  pi.  xii.  1. 

t  Lindenschmit,  "A.  u.  h.  Vorzeit,"  vol.  i.  Heft  xi.  Taf.  1. 
t  Von  Sacken,  "Grabf.  zu  Hallst.,"  Taf.  viii.  5,  6. 
5  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  i.  p.  167.  ||  Lib.  iii.  c.  14. 

A  A  2 


356  SHIELDS,    BUCKLERS,    AND   HELMETS.  [CHAP.  XV. 

The  following  English  and  French  helmets  of  bronze  may  just 
be  mentioned. 

(1.)  A  helmet  of  hemi-spherical  form  tapering  to  a  projection,  pierced 
above  to  receive  a  crest  or  ornament,  the  extreme  height  being  about 
8£  inches,  and  the  diameter  at  the  base  nearly  the  same.  This  was  found 
in  Moorgate  Street,  London.* 

(2.)  One  found  in  the  Thames,  f  near  Waterloo  Bridge,  with  projecting 
horns  and  ornamented  with  scroll-work  and  red  enamel.  This  is  un- 
doubtedly of  the  Late  Celtic  Period.  Some  Etruscan  helmets  also  bear 
horns,  but  more  curved  in  form  than  those  on  this  helmet  from  the 
Thames. 

(3.)  Another,  more  conical  in  form,  and  with  a  semicircular  plate  at 
the  back,  locality  unknown,  but  probably  from  a  river.!  This  was  in  the 
Meyrick  Collection,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

The  helmets  found  on  Ogmore  Down,§  Glamorganshire,  appear  to  be 
of  much  later  date. 

A  helmet  from  Auxonne,  Cote  d'Or,  has  been  figured  by  Chantre.|| 
Another  was  found  with  various  bronze  antiquities  at  Theil  ^f  (Loir  et 
Cher). 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  518. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  342 ;  Waring's  "  Ornaments  of  Remote  Ages," 
pi.  xci.  10. 

I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  362. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  553,  pi.  xxxvi.  II  "  Album,"  pi.  xvi.  bit. 

II  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  146. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

TRUMPETS    AND   BELLS. 

ANOTHER  instrument  probably  connected  with  warfare,  though 
not  strictly  speaking  an  arm  either  of  offence  or  defence,  is  the 
trumpet,  of  which  numerous  examples  in  bronze  have  been  found, 
especially  in  Ireland.  It  is  very  doubtful  whether  the  greater 
part  of  them  do  not  belong  to  the  Early  Iron  Age,  rather  than  to 
that  of  Bronze  ;  but  as  it  seems  probable  that  some  at  least  belong 
to  a  transitional  period,  and  it  is  possible  that  others  are  of  even 
earlier  date,  they  could  hardly  be  passed  over  without  notice  in 
these  pages. 

There  are  two  distinct  classes  of  these  instruments,  so  far  as  the 
process  of  their  manufacture  is  concerned,  viz.  those  which  are 


Fig.  438.— Limerick.       I 

cast  in  one  piece,  and  those  which  are  formed  of  sheet-metal 
turned  over  and  riveted  to  form  the  tube.  There  are  also  two 
distinct  varieties  of  the  instrument,  viz.  those  in  which  the  aperture 
for  blowing  is  at  the  end,  and  those  in  which  it  is  at  the  side. 

Sir  W.  Wilde,  in  his  Catalogue  *  of  the  Museum  of  the  Royal 
Irish  Academy,  has  devoted  several  pages  to  a  detailed  description 
of  the  trumpets  found  in  Ireland,  to  which  the  reader  is  referred. 
Those  which  he  figures  are  all  curved,  some  almost  to  a  semicircle, 
others  to  a  more  irregular  sweep.  Some  straight  tubes  which 
were  found  in  company  with  several  curved  horns  he  has  regarded, 
but  without  sufficient  cause,  as  the  portions  of  a  "  commander's 
staff,"  or  of  the  handle  of  a  halberd.  One  of  these  is  shown  in 
Fig.  438,  borrowed  from  his  Catalogue.!  A  similar  straight  tube, 

*  P.  623  et  seqq.     j  t  Fig.  360,  p.  492. 


358  TRUMPETS   AND    BELLS.  [CHAP.  XVI. 

(23f  inches,)  found  with  trumpets  at  Dunmanway,  Co.  Cork, is  now  in 
the  British  Museum.  The  earliest  known  instance  of  the  discovery 
of  such  instruments  is,  according  to  Wilde,  that  recorded  by  Sir 
Thomas  Molyneux,*  in  1725,  of  a  "short  side-mouthed  trumpet" 
being  found  with  others  in  a  mound  near  Carrickfergus,  which  was 
then  regarded  as  of  Danish  origin.  But  so  early  as  1713  Mr.  F. 
Nevill  described  eight  bronze  trumpets  found  at  Dungannon,t  Co. 
Tyrone.  In  1750  thirteen  or  fourteen  more  curved  bronze  horns 
were  discovered  between  Cork  and  Mallow,  three  of  which  are 
described  and  figured  in  the  "  Vetusta  Monumenta." $ 

There  is  a  remarkable  resemblance  between  these  trumpets  and 
three  of  those  found  near  Chute  Hall,  Tralee,  Co.  Kerry,  and 
described  by  Mr.  Robert  Day,  F.S.A.,  in  the  Journal  of  ike  Royal 
Historical  and  Archceological  Association  of  Ireland.^  By  his 
kindness  I  am  able  here  to  reproduce  his  cuts  as  Figs.  439,  440,  and 
441.  It  will  be  observed  that  in  two  of  them  the  ends  are  open, 


Fig.  439.— Tralee. 


so  as  to  be  adapted  for  the  reception  of  mouth-pieces,  and  that  the 
end  of  the  other  is  closed.  In  this  there  is  a  lateral  opening  to 
which  to  apply  the  mouth.  It  is  on  the  inner  curve  of  the  trumpet, 
but  in  some  other  cases  it  is  at  the  side.  As  Mr.  Day  has 
observed,  there  are  rivet-holes  at  the  wide  ends  of  two  of  the 
horns,  as  if  for  securing  some  more  widely  expanding  end,  while 
in  the  more  bell-mouthed  examples  no  such  rivet-holes  are  present. 
The  trumpet  shown  in  Fig.  440  is  made  of  two  pieces  which  fit 
exactly  into  each  other,  one  of  them  being  nearly  straight.  The 
length  of  this  instrument,  taken  along  the  external  curve,  is 
50  inches,  and  its  bell-shaped  mouth  is  4  inches  in  diameter.  It 
will  be  seen  that  at  the  mouths,  and  in  other  positions  on  these 

*  "  Discourse  concerning  Danish  Mounds,  &c."  f  Phil.  Trans.,  vol.  xxviii.  p.  270. 
J  Vol.  ii.  pi.  xx.  3,  4,  5  ;  Gough's  "  Camden,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xiv. ;  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  pi.  xiii.  • 
§  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  422. 


TRUMPETS  WITH  LATERAL  OPENINGS.  359 

three  trumpets,  there  are  small  conical  projections  or  spikes  always 
in  groups  of  four.  Mr.  Day  has  suggested  the  possibility  of  these 
being  added  to  give  effect  to  blows  with  the  trumpets  in  case  it 
became  necessary  to  use  them  as  weapons  of  offence.  He  has  also 
pointed  out  the  remarkable  resemblance  between  the  horns  with 
the  lateral  openings  and  the  war  trumpets  in  use  in  Central  Africa, 


Figs.  440  and  441.— Tralee. 


which  are  made  from  elephants'  tusks.  One  of  these  is  shown  in 
Fig.  442,  also  kindly  lent  by  Mr.  Day.  The  conch-shell  trumpets 
of  Fiji  have  also  lateral  openings. 

As  will  subsequently  be  seen,  trumpets  of  the  two  types  repre- 


Fig.  442.— Africa. 

sented  by  Figs.  439  and  440  have  been  found  associated  with  bronze 
weapons. 

To  return  to  the  trumpets  from  Cork  described  in  the  "  Vetusta 
Monumenta."  Two  of  these  are  formed,  like  Fig.  440,  of  two  pieces, 
and  are  open  at  the  end,  which  may  have  been  provided  with  some 
kind  of  mouth-piece.  The  other,  like  Fig.  439,  is  cast  in  a  single 
piece  and  is  closed  at  the  small  end,  but  has  a  large  orifice  at  the 
side  like  the  Portglenone  specimen  Fig.  444.  Both  are  provided 


360  TRUMPETS   AND    BELLS.  [CHAP.  XVI. 

with  a  number  of  conical  projections  by  way  of  ornament  round  the 
mouth,  and  one  of  them  has  similar  small  spikes  in  other  positions. 
With  them  were  found  some  pieces  of  straight  tubing,  which  were 
also  decorated  in  a  similar  manner.  The  horn  with  the  side  aperture 
is  provided  with  a  ring  for  suspension,  like  Fig.  439.  Some  of  the 
straight  tubes  have  a  sliding  ferrule  upon  them  also  furnished  with 
a  ring. 

Sir  W.  Wilde  observes  of  a  horn  about  24  inches  long  with  the 
aperture  at  the  end  slightly  everted,  as  if  for  holding  the  lips,  that 
it  requires  a  great  exertion  even  to  produce  a  dull  sound  with  this 
instrument.  As  to  those  with  lateral  apertures  2  inches  long  on 
the  average,  and  1$  inches  wide,  he  says  that  "  it  is  not  possible 
by  any  yet  discovered  method  of  placing  the  lips  to  this  mouth- 
hole  to  produce  a  musical  sound ;  but,  as  conjectured  by  Walker 
in  1786,  these  instruments  might  have  been  used  as  speaking- 
trumpets,  to  convey  the  voice  to  a  great  distance  as  well  as  render 
it  much  louder." 

In  one  instance  of  a  trumpet,  like  Fig.  439,  being  broken 
across  the  mouth-piece,  it  has  been  repaired  by  a  process  of  burning 

together,  like  that  adopted 
in  the  case  of  broken 
swords  *  previously  men- 
tioned. The  mended  por- 
tion is  shown  in  Fig.  443,t 
borrowed  from  Wilde.  This 
trumpet  was  found  at  Derrynane,  Co.  Kerry. 

A  trumpet,  broken  across  the  middle  and  mended  in  a  similar 
manner,  formed  part  of  the  "  Dowris  find,"  from  which  a  number 
of  specimens  are  preserved  in  the  British  Museum,*  and  others 
are  in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy.  The  metal  of 
which  most  of  the  articles  in  this  hoard  are  formed  has  a  peculiar 
golden  lustre  which  is  thought  to  arise  from  the  admixture  of  a 
certain  proportion  of  lead.  A  horn  analyzed  by  Donovan  §  gave  : 

Copper 79-34 

Tin 10-87 

Lead         .  .          .  9'11 

99-32 

*P.  282. 

t  Wilde,  fig.  529,  p.  592,  kindly  lent  by  the  Council  of  the  R.  I.  A.  One  of  Mr. 
Day's  trumpets  is  also  patched. 

£  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p.  96.  There  is  an  article  on  Irish  trumpets  by  Dr.  Petrie 
in  the  Dublin  Pennti  Journal,  vol.  ii.  See  also  Proc.  jB.  /.  A.,  vol.  iv.  pp.  237,  423. 

§  Von  Bibra,  "Die  Br.  u.  Kupf.-leg.,"  p.  140. 


THE    DOWRIS   HOARD.  361 

The  find  took  place  at  Dowris,  near  Parsonstown,  in 
King's  County,  and  comprised,  besides  trumpets  and  socketed 
celts,  a  casting  for  a  hammer-head,  a  socketed  knife,  tanged  knives, 
razors,  a  broad  rapier-shaped  dagger-blade,  broken  swords,  a 
dagger  formed  from  a  part  of  a  sword,  spear-heads  both  leaf-shaped 
and  with  openings  in  the  blade,  vessels  of  thin  bronze,  rough  metal, 
some  rattles  or  crotals,  such  as  will  shortly  be  mentioned,  a  pin 
with  a  hook  somewhat  like  a  crochet-needle,  and  some  rubbing 
stones  for  grinding  and  polishing.  There  may  have  been  other 
articles,  but  those  here  mentioned  are  represented  in  the  portion 
of  the  hoard  now  in  the  British  Museum.  The  association  of 
trumpets  with  such  a  series  raises  the  presumption  that  some  of 
them  at  least  belong  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Age  proper. 

Some  of  these  Dowris  trumpets  are  engraved  in  the  "  Horse  Ferales,"  * 
and  one  of  them  belonging  to  the  Earl  of  Eosse  is  peculiar  as  having  two 


Fig.  444.— Portglenone. 

loops  opposite  each  other  above  and  below.  A  detached  portion  of 
another  consists  of  a  nearly  straight  tube,  9  inches  long,  expanding  at 
each  end. 

Another  slightly  differing  example  with  the  opening  at  the  side  is  also 
figured  by  Mr.  E.  Day,  and  here  with  his  permission  reproduced.  It 
was  found  at  Portglenone,  Co.  Derry,  and  measures  24£  inches  along  the 
convex  margin. 

The  other  finds  of  trumpets  have  been  for  the  most  part  isolated.  Most 
of  those  I  am  about  to  cite  have  already  been  mentioned  by  Wilde.  A 
fine  specimen,  like  Fig.  444,  is  figured  by  Yallancey  f  and  in  Gough's 
"  Camden's  Britannia."  J  Three  others  and  a  portion  of  a  straight  tube  were 
found  in  the  county  of  Limerick  §  in  1787.  Others  have  been  found  near 
Killarney ;  ||  Cornaconway,  Co.  Cavan ;  Kilraughts,  Co.  Antrim ;  Dia- 
mond Hill,  Killeshandra ;  Crookstown  and  Dunmanway,  Co.  Cork. 

*  PI.  xiii.  3,  4,  5,  6,  9.  t  "  Coll.  Hib.,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  vii.  2. 

I  Vol.  iv.  pi.  xiii.  2.  §  Trans.  S.  I.  A.,  vol.  ii. 

||  Wilde's  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  624  et  seqq. ;  Jour.  R.  H.  and  A.  A.  of  Ireland, 
4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  422  et  seqq.  See  also  Ulster  Journ.  of  Arch.,  1860,  vol.  viii.  p.  99  ; 
and  "Horss  Ferales,"  p.  172. 


362  TRUMPETS    AND    BELLS.  [CHAP.   XVI. 

As  the  riveted  variety  of  trumpet  appears  from  its  ornamentation  to 
belong  to  the  Late  Celtic  Period,  a  short  mention  of  it  will  suffice.  One  * 
found  near  Armagh,  and  now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy, 
has  at  the  end  a  disc  7£  inches  in  diameter,  embossed  with  the  peculiar 
scroll  patterns  characteristic  of  that  period. 
Another  is  no  less  than  8  feet  5  inches 
along  the  convex  margin,  and  consists  of 
two  portions  made  of  sheet  bronze,  each 
turned  over  to  form  a  tube,  and  having  the 
abutting  edges  riveted  to  a  long  strip  of 
metal  extending  along  the  interior  of  the 
tube.  This  strip  of  bronze  is  only  half  an 
inch  in  width,  and  has  two  rows  of  minute 
rivet-holes  in  it,  the  rivets  being  placed 
alternately.  Their  circular  heads  are  on 
the  inside  of  the  tube,  and  so  minute  are 
the  rivets,  that  there  are  no  less  than  638 
of  them  along  the  seam.  It  is,  indeed,  not 
unlike  a  modern  riveted  hose  pipe  of  leather. 
In  what  manner  such  an  ingenious  and 
complicated  piece  of  riveting  could  have 
been  effected  is,  as  Sir  "W.  Wilde  remarks, 
a  subject  for  speculation. 

These  riveted  trumpets  appear  to  be 
unknown  in  Britain,  and  the  cast-bronze 
variety  is  extremely  scarce.  A  fine  and 
perfect  specimen  found  at  Caprington, 
Ayrshire,  has  been  engraved  for  the 
Ayrshire  and  Wigtonshire  Archaeological 
Association,  f  and  is  here,  by  the  kind- 
ness of  the  Council  of  the  Association, 
reproduced  as  Fig.  445.  It  was  found 
some  time  before  1654,  on  the  estate 
of  Coilsfield,  in  the  parish  of  Tarbolton, 
in  Kyle,  but  is  known  as  the  Caprington 
horn.  According  to  Mr.  R.  W.  Cochran- 
Patrick,  F.S.A.,  it  has  been  described  by 
Sir  Robert  Gordon  in  Blaeuw's  Atlas  £ 
and  by  Defoe.§  This  horn  is  25  inches 

in  length,   and  is  the  only  specimen  re- 
Fig.  445.-The  Caprington  Horn.    J  jj  A     l_  rJ'OxlJ 

corded  to  have  been  found  in  Scotland. 

The  metal  of  which  it  is  formed  has  been  analyzed  by  Professor 
Stevenson  Macadam,  and  consists  of — 

*  Wilde,  630  et  seqq. 

t "  Collections,"  vol.  i.  p.  74 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  xii.  p.  565. 

J  Vol.  vi.  p.  50.  §  "  Tour  through  Britain,"  vol.  iv.  p.  ISO. 


TRUMPETS    FOUND   IN    ENGLAND.  363 

Copper 90-26 

Tin 9-61 

Loss  '13 


100-00 

English  trumpets  of  bronze  are  of  extremely  rare  occurrence. 
One  found  in  the  river  Witham,  Lincolnshire,  has  been  figured 
in  the  Philosophical  Transactions*  and  is  nearly  straight  for  the 
greater  part  of  its  length  (about  28  inches),  curving  upwards  near 
the  end  into  an  irregularly-shaped  expanding  mouth.  It  has  an 
ornament  or  crest  like  a  mane  along  the  exterior  curve.  In  form 
it  is  not  unlike  the  carnyx  which  is  brandished  by  the  horseman 
on  the  coins  of  the  British  princes  Eppillus  and  Tasciovanus,t  and 
which  also  appears  on  some  Roman  coins  and  monuments  com- 
memorative of  Gallic  and  British  victories.  The  metal  on  analysis 
gave  copper  88,  tin  12,  and  the  tube  was  formed  from  a  hammered 
sheet  and  soldered  with  tin.  It  not  improbably  belongs  to  a 
period  not  far  removed  from  that  of  the  Roman  invasion  of  this 
country. 

Another,  with  two  joints  and  a  perfect  mouth-piece,  is  said  to 
have  been  found  at  Battle,  Sussex,  and  has  been  engraved  by 
Grose.  +  A  bronze  horn  about  3  feet  7  inches  long,  found  in 
Mecklenburg, §  is  not  unlike  the  Scotch  horn  in  character,  though 
smaller  at  the  wide  end.  The  curved  bronze  horns  or  "  hirer," 
found  in  Denmark,  ||  have  usually  broad  bossed  flanges  at  the 
wide  end,  and  most  resemble  the  Irish  Late  Celtic  trumpets. 

The  use  of  war  trumpets  among  the  Celtic  population  of 
Western  Europe  has  been  more  than  once  mentioned  by  classical 
writers,  and  passages  from  them  have  been  cited  by  Mr.  Franks 
and  others.  Polybius^I  speaks  of  the  innumerable  trumpeters  in 
the  army  of  the  Celts,  and  Diodorus  Siculus  **  says  of  the  Gauls 
that  they  have  barbaric  trumpets  of  a  special  nature  which  emit  a 
hoarse  sound  well  suited  to  the  din  of  battle.  The  Roman  lituus 
in  use  for  cavalry  seems  to  have  been  of  much  the  same  shape  as 
the  carnyx,  the  end  of  which  latter  was  in  some  cases  made  to 
resemble  a  fanciful  head  of  an  animal.  The  continuance  of  the 

*  Vol.  Ixxxvi.  1796,  pi.  xi. ;  "  Horae  Fer.,"  pi.  xiii.  2 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  IfiO. 

t  Evans,  "  Anc.  British  Coins,"  pi.  iii.  No.  11,  and  pi.  v.  No.  10,  &c. 

J  "Anc.  Armour,"  pi.  xiii. ;  (rough's  "Camden,"  vol.  iv.  p.  231. 

§  Lisch,  "  Fred.  Francisc.,"  Tab.  ix.  3. 

||  "Atlas  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  pi.  B,  vii. ;  Worsaae,  «  Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  199—201. 

t  Lib.  ii.  c.  29. 

**  Lib.  v.  c.  30.     See  also  Livy,  lib.  v.  37  and  39. 


364 


TRUMPETS   AND    BELLS. 


[CHAP.  xn. 


same  character  of  instrument  into  the  Early  Iron  Age,  and  the 
advanced  art  shown  in  producing  such  castings  as  the  trumpets 
from  Dowris  and  elsewhere,  go  to  prove  that  they  must  belong 
to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  if,  indeed,  some  may  not  more 
probably  be  placed  in  a  period  of  transition  from  Bronze  to  Iron. 

Another  form  of  instrument  intended  for  producing  sound,  if 
not  indeed  deserving  to  be  classed  as  a  musical  instrument,  is  the 
bell,  or  rattle,  formed  of  a  hollow  egg-shaped  or  pear-shaped  piece 
of  bronze,  with  a  pebble  or  piece  of  metal  inside  by  way  of 
clapper. 

The  only  examples  which  I  am  able  to  adduce  are  those  which 
formed  part  of  the  Dowris  hoard,  one  of  which  is  represented  in 
Fig.  446.*  There  are  three  such  in  the  Mu- 
seum of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy,  and  four  in 
the  British  Museum.  With  the  latter  is  a  smaller 
plain  bell  of  the  same  character  and  two  un- 
finished castings.  Sir  W.  Wilde  observes  that  in 
casting,  the  metal  appears  to  have  been  poured 
into  the  mould  by  an  aperture  at  the  side, 
through  which  the  core  of  clay  that  contained 
the  metal  clapper  was  broken  up.  The  mould 
was  in  two  halves,  and  the  rings  and  staples  at 
the  ends  were  cast  together.  In  the  perfect 
examples  at  the  British  Museum,  the  sides  of 
the  holes  by  which  the  core  was  extracted  have 
been  hammered  together  so  as  in  some  cases 
to  be  almost  closed.  In  one  instance  there  is 
some  appearance  of  the  sides  having  been  brazed  together. 

The  sound  emitted  by  these  bells  is  dull  and  feeble.  Like  the 
modern  horse  bells,  a  number  of  them  may  have  been  hung 
together,  and  not  improbably  employed  in  a  similar  manner  to 
attract  the  attention  both  of  the  eye  and  ear. 

*  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  612,  fig.  623,  whence  this  cut  is  reproduced. 
See  also  Proe.  R.  I.  A.,  vol.  iv.  pp.  237,  423. 


Fig.  446.— Dowris. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

PINS. 

PINS  for  the  purpose  of  fastening  the  dress  or  the  hair  seem  to 
have  been  in  use  from  very  early  times.  Made  of  bone,*  they  have 
been  found  associated  with  polished  stone  implements,  and  pins  of 
the  same  material  are  of  extremely  common  occurrence  with 
Roman  remains,  and  are  not  unknown  at  the  present  day.  In 
the  same  manner,  pins  of  bronze  or  of  brass  have  remained  in  use 
ever  since  their  first  introduction  during  the  Bronze  Period,  and 
it  is,  therefore,  by  no  means  easy,  and,  indeed,  often  absolutely 
impossible,  to  assign  a  date  with  any  degree  of  confi- 
dence to  such  objects  when  found  by  themselves,  and 
not  in  association  with  other  remains  of  which  the 
antiquity  can  be  more  readily  determined.  In  the 
case  of  small  or  imperfect  pins  there  is  considerable 
difficulty  in  distinguishing  them  from  awls,  such  as 
have  already  been  described  in  Chapter  VII.  In  other 
cases,  it  is  often  difficult  to  say  whether  bronze  pins, 
certainly  of  great  antiquity,  are  to  be  assigned  to  the 
Bronze  Period  properly  so  called,  or  the  Late  Celtic  or 
Early  Iron  Period. 

In  describing  the  objects  of  this  class,  it  will,  per- 
haps, be  best  to  take  first  such  examples  as  have  been  found  in 
the  exploration  of  tumuli  or  in  direct  association  with  bronze 
weapons  or  instruments. 

Among  the  numerous  relics  found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Durham, 
were  a  large  number  of  bronze  pins,  of  which  one,  f  3 £  inches  long,  is 
shown  in  Fig.  447.  Canon  Greenwell  has  eleven  others  from  3  inches  to 
5f  inches  long,  with  flat  heads,  all  from  this  cave,  as  well  as  one  which 
has  had  its  end  hammered  flat,  and  then  turned  over  into  a  loop,  so  as  to 

*  Greenwell,  "  British  Barrows,"  pp.  15,  31. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  130.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  Society 
for  the  use  of  this  cut. 


366 


PINS. 


[CHAP.  xvn. 


form  the  head.     A  socketed  knife  and  many  other  objects  from  this  cave 

have  been  described  in  previous  pages. 

Four  imperfect  bronze  pins,  without  heads,  the  longest  3f  inches  long, 

were  found  in  the  hoard  at  Marden,*  Kent,  with  a  sickle,  dagger,  and 

other  objects. 

What  is  termed  part  of  a  bronze  pin,  some  chipped  flints,  and  long 

ribbed  beads  of  pottery,  were  found  in  the  barrow  called  Matlow  Hill,f 

Cambridgeshire.  Another,  also  frag- 
mentary, was  found  with  a  flake  of 
calcined  flint,  four  jet  beads,  and  burnt 
bones  in  a  barrow  on  Wykeham  Moor,! 
Yorkshire,  by  Canon  Greenwell.  Others 
are  mentioned  by  Bateman  ;  §  but  in  all 
these  cases,  as  Canon  Greenwell  ||  has 
pointed  out,  the  presumed  pins  may 
have  been  awls  or  prickers.  The  little 
pin  found  with  a  lance-head,  a  small 
urn,  and  some  gold  ornaments  at  Upton 
Lovel,^j  Wilts,  may  have  been  of  the 
same  character,  as  also  other  pins  men- 
tioned by  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare.**  A  "  fine 
brass  pin  "  is  described  as  having  been 
found  with  glass,  jet,  and  amber  beads, 
together  with  burnt  bones,  in  a  barrow 
near  Wilsford.ff  A  very  fine  one  in  a 
barrow  at  Lake,!!  which,  from  the  en- 
graving, was  probably  an  awl.  The 
long  pin  with  a  handle  found  with  a 
bronze  celt  and  lance-head,  or  dagger, 
in  a  barrow  at  Abury,§§  may  also  have 
been  a  tool  of  that  kind.  The  bronze 
pins  recorded  to  have  been  found  in  a 
barrow  at  Bulford,||||  Wilts,  likewise 
seem  to  come  under  this  category. 

In  a  barrow  at  Brigmilston  ^f^[  an 
interment  of  burnt  bones  was  accom- 
panied by  a  pin  of  twisted  bronze, 

6  inches  long,  in  the  form  of  a  crutch,  the  head  perforated  (Fig.  448),  a 

small  dagger  of  bronze,  and  two  whetstones. 

A  smooth  pin  of  the  same  character  and  nearly  the  same  size,  but 

broken,  was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Norman  ton,***  in  company  with  burnt 

bones,  two  bronze  daggers,  a  whetstone,  and  a  pipe  of  bone. 

The  curious  pin,   with  two  rings  at  the  head,  in  each  of  which  is 

another  ring  (Fig.  449),  was  found  by  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare  in  a  barrow  near 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  259.          f  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  227. 

!  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  247. 

§  "Vest.  Ant.  Derb.,"  p.  34 ;  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  130. 

||  "  Brit.  Barrows,"  p.  366.  IF  Arch.,  xv.  p.  129. 

**  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.pp.  206—208.          ft  Op.  tit.,  p.  207. 

J|  Op.  cit.,  p.  210.     The  references  to  the  plate  are  somewhat  confused  or  confusing. 

§§  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  ii.  p.  90.  ||||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  319. 

HU  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  194,  pi.  xxiii.,  here  copied.      See  also  Arch.,  vol.  xliii. 


p.  467. 


;'Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  199,  pi.  xxiv. 


PINS    WITH    ANNULAR    HEADS. 


367 


Everley.  The  interment  seems  to  have  been  in  the  hollowed  trunk  of  a 
tree,  but  the  bones  were  burnt.  With  them  was  a  dagger  with  three 
rivets,  and  this  instrument,  which  is  described  as  having  been  in  a  sheath 
of  wood  lined  with  cloth.  Its  purpose  is  difficult  to  determine. 


Fig.  450.— Bry-n  Crug. 


Fig.  452.—  Chilton  Bustle.    1 


Another  pin  (4|  inches),  with  a  bi-lobed  head  and  three  perforations, 
was  found  with  a  two-looped  palstave  and  a  knife  with  an  interment  at 
Bryn  Crug,*  near  Carnarvon.  It  is  shown  in  full  size  in  Fig.  450. 

Pins  with  large  rings  for  their  heads  have  occasionally  been  found. 
One  such  from  Taunton,f  7f  inches,  is  shown  in  Fig.  451.  It  was  found 


*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  246. 
this  cut. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  94. 


I  am  indebted  to  the  Institute  for  the  use  of 
Pring,  "Brit,  and  Eom.  Taunlon,"  pi.  ii. 


368 


[CHAP.  xvu. 


with  palstaves,  a  socketed  celt,  rings,  and  other  objects. 
The  part  forming  the  pin  is  bent,  it  would  appear  inten- 
tionally, but  for  what  purpose  it  is  difficult  to  guess. 

Another  with  a  straight  pin  was  found  at  Chilton  Bustle,* 
Somersetshire.  The  annular  part  is  divided  in  the  middle, 
and  is  flat  and  thin.  It  is  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  452. 

Another  object  of  a  similar  character,  but  with  the  ring 
larger  (being  oval  and  4£  inches  by  3  inches)  and  with  the 
pin  part  shorter,  was  found  in  a  barrow  between  Lewes  and 
Brighton,!  with  a  long  pin,  to  be  subsequently  mentioned, 
and  a  pair  of  looped  bronze  bracelets,  like  Fig.  482.  These 
are  now  in  the  museum  at  Aba  wick  Castle.  Another  (6 
inches,  with  ring  2  inches  in  diameter),  probably  from  a 
Wiltshire  barrow,  J  is  in  the  collection  at  Stourhead. 

A  pin  of  the  same  character  from  the  Lake -dwellings  of 
Savoy  has  been  figured  by  Eabut.§ 

Another  form  has  a  smaller  ring  at  the  top,  and  the  pin 
beneath  is  usually  curved.  Fig.  453,  from  Wilde,  ||  shows 
an  example  of  this  kind.  One  of  the  two  pins  reported  to 
have  been  found  with  bronze  bridles  and  buckles  of  "  Late 
Celtic  "  character,  as  well  as  with  a  bronze  lance-head  and 
socketed  celt,  at  Hagbourn  Hill,^f  Berks,  was  of  this  type. 
The  other  had  a  flat  head. 

I  have  a  pin  of  the  same  kind  (4 J  inches)  found  at  Holt,** 
Worcestershire.  It  has,  however,  a  small  cross,  formed  of 
five  knobs,  attached  to  the  front  of  the  ring.  It  was  found 
in  the  bed  of  the  Severn,  and  was  presented  to  me  by  Mr. 
G.  Edwards,  C.E.  The  pins  of  this  character  seem  to  belong 
to  quite  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  if 
not  indeed  to  the  "  Late  Celtic." 

A  much  larger  form  of  pin  appears,  from 
its  style  of  ornamentation,  to  belong  more 
truly  to  the  Bronze  Period.  That  shown  in 
Fig.  454  was,  indeed,  found  with  a  bronze 
sword,  spear-head,  and  palstave,  in  the 
Thames  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  Wandle,!! 
Surrey,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum. 
It  is  7f  inches  in  length,  and  the  bulging 
portion  in  the  centre  is  pierced  probably  for 
some  means  of  attachment.  The  point,  Mr. 
Franks  thinks,  was  purposely  curved.  He 
regards  the  pin  as  having  been  intended  to 
adorn  the  hair  or  fasten  the  dress. 

Another  pin,  of  much  the  same   fashion, 
12^  inches  long,  also  has  the  point  curved. 
The  bulging  portion  is  in  this  instance  nearer 
the  head,  which,  moreover,  has  a  piece  of 
1!ireiana.*       amber  set  in  it,  and  there  is  a  small  loop  on     Rivef  Wan'aie. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  106.  f  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  265. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  469.          §  2eme  Mem.,  "  Album,"  pi.  xi.  17.          ||  Fig.  452. 
«t  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  348,  pi.  1.  **  Allies,  "Wore.,"  p.  149,  pi.  iv.  7. 

ft  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  8.     I  am  indebted  to  Mr.  Franks  for  the  use  of  this  cut. 


PINS    WITH   SPHEROIDAL   HEADS. 


369 


the  side  of  the  pin,  as  in  Fig.  457,  instead  of  a  hole  through  the  bulging 
part.  This  specimen  was  found  in  a  mine  near  the  river  Fowey,*  at 
a  depth  of  ten  fathoms  from  the  surface,  when  a  new  work  was  begun  for 
searching  after  tin  ore. 

The  long  pin  already  mentioned  as  found  in  a  barrow  near  Lewes  f  has 
an  expanded  head  with  a  boss  upon  it,  and  about  4  inches  below,  an 
ornamented  lozenge-shaped  plate,  beneath  which  is  a  small  loop  for 
attachment. 

Large  pins  of  the  same  character  have  been  found  in  the  Lake-dwell- 
ings of  France,  Switzerland,  and  Italy. 

A  large  bronze  pin,  13£  inches  long,  found  on  Salisbury  Plain,J  is 
described  as  having  a  flattened  head,  ornamented  on  one  side  with  a 
pattern.     This  which  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum    is,  however,  of    the    late    Celtic 
Period. 

It  is  by  no  means  impossible  that 
these  larger  and  heavier  pins  may  at 
times  have  served  as  piercing-tools  and 
even  as  weapons.  The  stiletto  sur- 
vives as  a  ladies'  piercing-tool,  but  no 
one  at  the  present  day  would  "  his 
quietus  make  with  a  bare  bodkin  ;  " 
though  there  was  probably  a  time  when 
both  stiletto  and  bodkin  served  a  double 
purpose,  and  were  used,  as  occasion 
might  require,  either  as  weapons  or 
as  tools. 

Smaller  pins,  ornamented  at  the  blunt 
end,  have  not  unfrequently  been  found. 

A  fragment  of  one  discovered  by  Sir  E. 
Colt  Hoare  in  a  barrow  at  Scratchbury,  is 
engraved  in  his  unpublished  plate,  and 
has  also  been  figured  by  Dr.  Thurnam, 
F.S.A.,§  in  his  memoir  so  often  quoted.  It 

is  here  reproduced  as  Fig.  455.  Another  from  a  barrow  at  Camerton,|| 
Somerset,  has  a  hollow  spheroidal  head,  with  a  double  perforation.  The 
head  and  upper  part  of  the  stem  are  decorated  with  parallel  rings  and 
oblique  hatching,  as  may  be  seen  in  Fig.  456.  In  character  this  pin 
much  resembles  some  of  those  from  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings. 

A  very  similar  pin  was  obtained  from  a  barrow  near  Firle,^[  Sussex,  by 
Dr.  Mantell. 

A  fine  pin,  nearly  12  inches  long,  with  a  head  of  this  shape,  was  found 
near  Enniskillen.  The  upper  part  of  the  pin  is  ornamented  with  groups 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xii.  p.  414,  pi.  li.  8.  f  Suss.  Arch.  Coll,  vol.  ii.  p.  260. 

%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  469. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  468.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  Soc.  Ant.  for  this  and 
the  next  cut. 

||  Proc.  Som.  Arch.  Soc.,  vol.  viii.  p.  45. 

II  Dr.  Thurnam,  ubi  sup.  (Horsfield,  "Lewes,"  vol.  i.  48,  pi.  iii.  12). 
B  B 


370 


PINS. 


[CHAP.  xvn. 


of  five  small  headings  round  it,  and  between  these  are  spiral  ribs,  forming 
many  threaded  screws  alternately  right-  and  left-handed.* 

A  long  pin  from  Gralway,  f  of  which  the  lower  part  is  twisted  into 
a  spiral,  has  a  head  with  a  notch  in  it,  much  like  that  of  a  modern 
screw. 

The  pins  with  spherical  heads,  ornamented  by  circular  holes,  with 
concentric  circles  around  them,  so  common  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwell- 


Fig.  458.       .    Fig.  459. 
Ireland,  i    Cambridge. 


Fig.  461. 
North  of  Ireland, 


ings,  are  as  yet  unknown  in  Britain.  I  have,  nevertheless,  a  portion 
of  what  appears  to  be  the  large  spherical  head  of  a  pin,  which  formed 
part  of  the  hoard  found  at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens.  Instead  of  holes, 
however,  it  has  bosses  at  intervals,  with  concentric  circles  round 
them.  In  the  spaces  between  are  bands  of  parallel  dotted  lines.  + 

*  Journ.  X.  Hist.  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  4  Sec.  vol.  v.  p.  97. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  394 ,  pi.  xxxiv.  5.       j  Like  Keller, " Lake-dwellings,"  pi.  xxxiv.  2. 


PINS   WITH    FLATTENED    HEADS. 


371 


Some  of  the  Swiss  pins  have  knobs  of  tin,  or  some  other  metal 
than  bronze,  and  even  red  stones  inlaid  in  the  perforations,  so  that 
not  improbably  those  which  now  show  merely  holes  in  the  metal 
may  have  been  inlaid  with  horn  or  some  perishable  material. 

Pins  with  flat  heads,  sometimes  of  large  size,  are  of  not  unfre- 
quent  occurrence,  and  appear  to  belong  to  the  Bronze  Age. 

An  Irish  example  with  a  small  loop  at  the  side  is  shown  in  Fig.  457, 
from  a  specimen  in  my  own  collection.  It  has  apparently  at  some  time 
been  longer.  Some  German  pins  *  are  provided  with  side  loops  in  the 
same  manner. 

A  large  pin,  8£  inches,  with  the  upper  part  beaded,  and  with  a  small 
side  loop,  was  in  the  hoard  found  near  Amiens,  and  is  preserved  in  the 
museum  of  that  town.  With  it  were  socketed  celts,  a  sickle,  &c. 

A  pin  of  the  same  general  form,  but 
without  any  loop  and  with  a  more 
ornamental  head,  also  from  Ireland, 
is  shown  in  Fig.  458,  and  an  English 
example,  found  near  Cambridge,  in 
Fig.  459. 

One  with  a  plain  flat  head,  and 
llf  inches  long,  is  figured  by  Wilde 
(Fig.  446). 

Similar  pins  with  flat  heads  have 
been  found  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of 
Savoy  and  Switzerland. 

The  large  flat  heads  are  often 
highly  ornamented. 

The  pin  from  Ireland,  of  which  the 
head  is  shown  in  Fig.  460,f  one-third 
of  the  actual  size,  is  13£  inches  long. 
This  cut  and  Figs.  453,  462,  463,  and 
465,  are  kindly  lent  by  the  Eoyal 
Irish  Academy. 

The  ornamental  expanded  heads, 
which  usually  have  a  conical  projection  in  the  centre,  are  more  fre- 
quently turned  over  so  as  to  be  in  the  same  plane  as  the  pins  and  be 
visible  when  stuck  into  a  garment.  Fig.  461  is  from  a  specimen  of  my 
own  found  in  the  North  of  Ireland. 

Fig.  462,  from  Wilde, J  shows  a  small  pin  of  the  same  kind,  found  at 
Keelogue  Ford. 

Occasionally  the  head  seems  disproportionately  large  to  the  pin. 

That  of  which  the  highly  ornamented  head  is  shown  in  Fig.  463, §  is 
only  5^  inches  long,  while  the  head  itself  is  2^  inches  in  diameter. 

A  grand  pin  of  this  kind  from  Ireland,  with  the  head  4§  inches  in 
diameter,  and  the  pin  lOf  inches  long,  is  in  the  British  Museum.  The 
face  of  the  disc  has  five  concentric  circles  upon  it,  with  triangles,  squares, 
and  ring  ornaments  between  them. 

*  Lisch,  "  Freder.  Francisc.,"  Tab.  xxiv.  5,  6.        t  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  fig.  Ml 
I  Op.  cit.,  p.  558,  fig.  449 ;  Journ.  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Scot.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  194. 
§  Wilde,  fig.  448. 

B  B  2 


Fig.  462.— Keelogue 
Ford.    | 


Fig.  463.— Ireland. 


372 


PINS, 


[CHAP.  xvii. 


A  Scottish  specimen  of  the  same  character  as  Pig.  462  (9  inches), 
found  at  Tarves,  Aberdeenshire,  together  with  bronze  swords,  is  in  the 
same  collection.  The  head  is  If  inches  in  diameter.  Another  of  the 
same  type  from  Ireland  *  is  said  to  have  had  the  cone  originally  gilt. 

The  head  of  another,  which  was  found  with  a  number  of  bronze  swords 
at  Edinburgh,!  is  shown  in  Fig.  464.  This  discovery  seems  to  prove  that 
the  pins  of  this  type  belong  to  quite  the  latter  part  of  the  Bronze  Period. 

Pins  with  flat  heads  turned  over  so  as  to  lie  parallel  with  their  stems 
are  of  common  occurrence  in  Denmark.^  They  are  usually  ornamented 
with  concentric  ribs,  and  the  heads  are  sometimes  plated  with  gold.  The 
stems  are  also  often  decorated. 

Another  form  of  pin  has  a  cup-shaped  head,  not  unlike  the  termination 


Kg.  464.— Edinburgh. 


Fig.  465.— Ireland. 


of  the  large  gold  clasps,  like  drawer-handles,  so  frequently  found   in 
Ireland.     One  of  these  is  shown  in  Fig.  465,  borrowed  from  Wilde. § 

An  example  of  this  kind  was  found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave. 
Another  pin  of  this  type,  10£  inches  long,  with  the  cup-shaped  head  £  inch 
in  diameter  and  £  inch  deep,  with  a  small  cone  projecting  in  the  bottom 
of  the  cup,  was  found  with  a  bronze  sword  and  two  spear-heads  in  peat 
near  the  Point  of  Sleat,  ||  Skye. 

Sir  W.  Wilde  has  given  figures  of  numerous  other  types  of  pins, 
but  they  nearly  all  belong  to  a  later  period  than  that  of  which  I 
am  treating.  That  from  a  brooch  at  Bowermadden,  Caithness, 
engraved  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
Scotland  *k  is  also  of  later  date.  Altogether  the  subject  of  pins 
belonging  to  the  Bronze  Age  in  the  British  Islands  is  one  of 

*  Journ.  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  194. 

t  froc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  N.S.  vol.  i.  p.  322.  For  the  loan  of  this  block  I  am  indebted 
to  the  Council  of  the  Society. 

+  Worsaae,  "  Nord.  Olds.,"  fig.  239.  §  "  Catal.  Mus.  K.  I.  A.,"  p.  558,  fig.  450. 

||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  102.  H  Vol.  ix.  p.  247. 


THEIR   DATE    DIFFICULT   TO    DETERMINE.  373 

which,  in  the  present  state  of  our  knoAvledge,  it  is  difficult  to 
treat  satisfactorily,  so  few  of  the  more  highly  developed  types 
having  been  found  in  actual  association  with  other  bronze  relics. 
In  England  especially  the  rarity  of  bronze  pins,  as  compared,  for 
instance,  with  their  abundance  in  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Southern 
Europe,  is  very  striking.  As  will  subsequently  be  seen,  there  is 
nearly  as  great  a  scarcity  of  bracelets  and  of  some  other  orna- 
ments. It  may  be  that  for  personal  decorations  the  jet  and 
amber,  which  during  our  Bronze  Age  were  so  much  in  fashion  for 
ornaments,  suited  the  native  taste  better  than  decorations  manu- 
factured from  the  same  metal  as  that  which  served  for  tools  and 
weapons ;  and  that  when  metal  was  used  gold  had  the  preference. 
At  the  same  time,  for  useful  articles,  such  as  some  kinds  of  pins, 
bronze  may  well  have  served,  and  it  is  to  be  observed  that  no 
pins  decorated  with  gold  have  as  yet  been  found  with  bronze 
weapons  in  Britain,  though  they  have  occurred  in  other  countries. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

TORQUES,  BRACELETS,  RINGS,  EAR-RINGS,  AND  PERSONAL  ORNAMENTS. 

ALTHOUGH  some  of  the  pins  described  in  the  last  chapter  were 
destined  for  ornament  rather  than  for  use,  they  cannot  as  a  class 
be  regarded  as  purely  ornamental.  The  collars  and  armlets,  to 
which  the  present  chapter  is  to  be  devoted,  must,  I  think,  be  con- 
sidered as  essentially  ornaments,  though  possibly  in  some  cases 
affording  protection  to  the  neck  and  arms.  The  modern  epaulette 
was  originally  intended  for  the  protection  of  the  shoulder,  though 
now,  as  a  rule,  little  better  than  an  ornament. 

The  torque,  or  tore,  takes  its  name  from  the  Latin  torques, 
which  again  is  derived  a  torquendo.  This  word  torques  was 
applied  to  a  twisted  collar  of  gold  or  other  metal  worn  around  the 
neck.  Among  the  ancient  Gauls  gold  torques  appear  to  have  been 
abundant,  and  to  have  formed  an  important  part  of  the  spoils 
acquired  from  them  by  their  Roman  conquerors.  About  223  B.C.,* 
when  Flaminius  Nepos  gained  his  victory  over  the  Gauls  on  the 
Addua,  it  is  related  that  instead  of  the  Gauls  dedicating,  as  they 
had  intended,  a  torque  made  from  the  spoils  of  the  Roman 
soldiers  to  their  god  of  war,  Flaminius  erected  to  Jupiter  a  golden 
trophy  made  from  the  Gaulish  torques.  The  name  of  the  Torquati, 
a  family  of  the  Manlia  Gens,  was  derived  from  their  ancestor,  T. 
Manlius,f  having  in  B.C.  361  slain  a  gigantic  Gaul  in  single  com- 
bat, whose  torque  he  took  from  the  dead  body  after  cutting  off  the 
head,  and  placed  it  around  his  own  neck. 

On  some  of  the  denarii  of  the  'Manlia  family  +  the  torque  forms 
a  circle  round  the  head  of  Rome  on  the  obverse.  Two  interesting 
papers  "  On  the  Tore  of  the  Celts,"  by  Dr.  Samuel  Birch,  will  be 
found  in  the  Archaeological  Journal.  § 

Although  these  gold  torques   in  many  instances  undoubtedly 

*  Florus,  lib.  ii.  c.  4.  t  Aulus  Gellius,  lib.  ix.  c.  13. 

J  Cohen,  »  Med.  Cons.,"  pi.  xxvi.  5.  §  Vol.  ii.  p.  368 ;  vol.  iii.  p.  27. 


TORQUES    OF   GOLD. 


375 


belong  to  the  Bronze  Period,  they  are  sufficiently  well  known  to  anti- 
quaries to  render  it  needless  for  me  here  to  enter  into  any  minute 
description  of  them.  The  commonest  form  presents  a  cruciform 
section,  so  that  the  twist  is  that  of  a  four-threaded  screw,  and  at 
either  end  there  is  a  plain,  nearly  cylindrical  bar,  turned  back  so 
as  to  form  a  kind  of  hook.  I  have  a  fine  example  of  this  kind  of 
torque,  found  with  a  bronze  anvil  (Fig.  217)  and  other  bronze 


Fig.  466.— Wedmore. 


instruments  and  weapons  at  Fresne'  la  Mere,  Calvados.  A  similar 
but  smaller  gold  torque  was  found  near  Boyton,  Suffolk,*  which  is 
said  to  have  had  the  extremities  secured  together  by  two  small 
pen  annular  rings  of  gold,  embracing  the  two  terminal  hooks. 

One  42  inches  long  was  found  on  Cader  Idris  ;t  others  in 
Glamorganshire;*  at  Pattingham,  Staffordshire^  and  in  several 
other  parts  of  Britain.  Some  fine  examples  of  these  funicular 


*  Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  471. 
J  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  464. 


t  Arch.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  557. 
§  Op.  cit.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  96. 


376  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.        [CHAP.  XVIII. 

torques  of  gold,  as  well  as  of  other  varieties  of  the  same  kind  of 
ornament,  are  in  the  Museum  of  the  Koyal  Irish  Academy  at 
Dublin.* 

The  torques  formed  of  bronze  are,  as  a  rule,  thicker  and  bulkier 
in  their  proportions  than  those  of  gold,  and  the  ends  are  usually 
left  straight  or  but  slightly  hooked  over  so  as  to  interlock.  They 
are  never  provided  with  the  projecting  cylindrical  ends  already 
mentioned. 

The  form  most  frequently  discovered  in  the  British  Islands  is 


Fig.  467.— Wedmore. 


that  known  as  funicular,  one  of  which  is  shown  in  Fig.  466, 
copied  from  the  Archceological  Association  Journal.^ 

The  original  was  found  with  two  others  at  Wedmore,  Somersetshire. 
One  of  these  is  of  the  same  type,  but  of  smaller  size,  and  not  quite  so 
closely  twisted,  as  shown  in  Pig.  467  ;  and  the  other  is  made  of  a  flat 
ribbon  of  metal,  f  inch  broad,  twisted,  as  shown  in  Fig.  469,  which  is 
copied  from  the  same  plate  as  Figs.  466  and  467. 

From  another  account  of  these  torques,  J  it  appears  that  they  were  found 
near  Heath  House,  in  the  parish  of  Wedmore,  and  that  with,  them  were 
two  celts  and  a  few  amber  beads  strung  on  a  wire.  This  latter,  to  me, 
sounds  doubtful,  as  the  wire  is  probably  a  later  addition.  The  weight  of 

*  See  "Wilde's  "  Catal.,"  p.  70,  et  seqq.  ;  and  "  Vetusta.  Monum.,"  vol.  v.  pi.  xxix. 
t  Vol.  xxi.  pi.  xii.  2.  J  Areh.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  81. 


FUNICULAR    TORQUES.  377 

the  largest  is  said  to  be  £  pound,  of  the  second  2  ounces,  and  of  the 
smallest  1£  ounce. 

Another  torque  of  the  character  of  Fig.  466,  about  9  inches  in  diameter, 
was  found  with  a  bracelet,  Fig.  481,  and  a  two-looped  palstave,  Fig.  87, 
at  West  Buckland,  Somersetshire,*  and  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  W. 
A.  Sanford.  It  is  shown  on  the  scale  of  one-third  in  Fig.  468. 

A  portion  of  another  torque,  but  of  slender  make,  was  found  at  Pen 
Pits,  f  in  the  same  county ;  and  another,  somewhat  imperfect,  near 
Edington  Burtle.J  With  the  latter  was  a  portion  of  a  ribbon  torque  like 
Fig.  469,  two  bracelets,  some  rings,  and  four  palstaves. 

Two  very  fine  torques,  like  Fig.  468,  8f  inches  in  diameter,  were  also 
found  in  Somersetshire  on  the  Quantock  Hills,  §  in  1794.  Within  each  of 


Fig.  468.— West  Buckland. 


them  is  said  to  have  been  placed  a  looped  palstave,  like  Fig.  77.  The 
weight  of  one  of  the  torques  is  reported  to  have  been  nearly  2  pounds. 

In  the  collection  of  the  Eev.  E.  Duke,  of  Lake  House,  near  Salisbury, 
are  two  fine  torques  of  this  kind,  one  large  and  heavy,  and  the  other 
smaller  and  more  slender,  which  were  found  near  Amesbury.  With  them 
were  several  spiral  rings  closely  resembling  Fig.  489. 

Two  others  found  with  armillse  in  Dorsetshire  ||  are  now  in  the  British 
Museum.  The  larger  of  these  is  closely  twisted,  and  about  7£  inches  in 
diameter.  The  smaller  is  thicker,  and  shows  a  coarser  twist,  and  is 
about  6f  inches  in  diameter.  The  armillee  are  penannular  and  of  rhom- 
boidal  section. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxrvii.  p.  107,  whence  this  cut  is  lent  by  the  Council, 
t  Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Soc.  froc.,  vol.  vii.  p.  27. 

J  Op.  cit.,  vol.  v.  1854,  p.  91.  §  Arch.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  94,  pi.  xxiii. 

||  froc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  i.  p.  234. 


378  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.        [CHAP.  XVIII. 

Two  small  torques,  some  bronze  rings  or  bracelets,  and  a  palstave 
are  recorded  to  have  been  dug  up  in  Woolmer  Forest,  Hants.*  Two 
spiral  rings  were  found  with  them. 

In  the  collection  of  Mr.  Durden,  at  Blandford,  are  several  specimens 
found  at  Spetisbury,  Dorset,  f 

I  have  a  thin  torque  about  6J  inches  in  diameter,  but  unfortunately 
broken,  found  in  Burwell  Fen,  Cambridgeshire. 

In  some  instances  the  plain  ends  of  the  torque  are  left  without  hooks. 
Such  is  the  case  with  the  fine  collar  found,  with  four  looped  armlets  and 
a  palstave  without  loop,  at  Hollingbury  Hill,J  near  Brighton,  which  is 
now  in  the  British  Museum.  On  each  extremity  was  a  spiral  ring  of 


Fig.  469.—  Wedmore. 


bronze,  considerably  larger  than  the  rod  forming  the  torque,  and  a  third 
ring  is  shown  in  the  published  drawing.  The  palstave,  which  is  broken 
in  the  middle,  apparently  on  purpose,  lay  within  the  circle  of  the  torque, 
which  also  was  broken  across  the  middle.  At  regular  intervals  round  it 
lay  the  four  bracelets,  which  resemble  Fig.  482,  and  vary  somewhat  in 
•weight. 

The  third  of  the  torques  already  mentioned  as  found  at  Wedmore  is 
shown  in  Fig.  469. 

It  is  of  a  type  which  occurs  more  frequently  in  gold  than  in  bronze, 
and  in  the  former  metal  has  often  been  found  in  Scotland.  Several 
such  were  discovered  under  a  large  stone  at  Urquhart,  Elginshire. 
Others  have  been  found  at  Culter,  Lanarkshire  ;  §  Belhelvie,  Aber- 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  88.  t  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  232. 

%  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  323;  Arch.,  vol.  xxix.  372;  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii. 
p.  267. 

§  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  211,  pi.  xxi.  2. 


KIBBON   TORQUES.  379 

cleenshire ;  Little  Lochbroom,  Eoss-sliire ;  Kannoch,  Perthshire ;  and 
elsewhere.  Some  of  these  are  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 

There  are  three  or  four  such  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy. 

A  gold  torque  of  this  class  found  at  Clonmacnoise,*  King's  County, 
has  oval  balls  at  each  end  instead  of  hooks. 

So  far  as  at  present  known,  the  funicular  torques  of  bronze  are 
more  abundant  in  the  southern  and  western  counties  than  in  the 
other  parts  of  England.  They  appear  to  be  unknown  both  in 


Fig.  470.—  Yarnton. 


Scotland  and  Ireland,  though  torques  of  Late  Celtic  patterns  occur 
in  those  countries. 

The  inference  is  that,  although  socketed  celts  are  rarely  if  ever 
found  with  them,  these  twisted  neck-rings  belong  to  the  close  of  the 
Bronze  Period,  and  were  introduced  into  Britain  from  the  Continent. 
The  form  is,  however,  rare  in  the  North  of  France,  and  the  nearest 
analogues  to  the  English  torques  with  which  we  are  acquainted  are 
to  be  seen  among  those  from  Northern  Germany  and  Denmark. 

The  Danish  form,  with  broad  expanding  ends  terminating  in 
spirals,  and  the  derivatives  from  it  in  which  the  spirals  are  repre- 
sented by  solid  cast  plates  with  volutes  upon  them,  are  nevertheless 
unknown  in  Britain,  as  is  also  that  with  the  twist  alternately  to 
the  right  and  to  the  left. 

*  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  74,  fig.  603. 


380  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.  XVIII. 

Another  form  of  bronze  torque  found  in  Britain  is  made  from 
a  plain  piece  of  wire,  hammered  out  at  each  end  into  a  broad, 
nearly  quadrangular,  plate. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  470  lay  near  the  head  of  a  contracted  skeleton  at 
Yarnton,  four  miles  from  Oxford,  at  a  spot  which  seems  to  have  been  a 
prehistoric  cemetery.  I  obtained  it  through  the  kindness  of  Professor 
Eolleston  when  visiting  the  place.  The  ends  are  ornamented  by  hammer 
marking.  In  a  line  with  the  wire  forming  the  torque  is  a  slightly  raised 
flat  band  perpendicularly  fluted ;  the  expanding  parts  above  and  below 
are  fluted  horizontally.  A  herald  would  engrave  "  azure,  a  fesse  gules  " 
in  the  same  manner,  but  with  the  lines  much  closer  together.  Two 
torques  of  the  same  character,  found  at  Lumphanan,  Aberdeenshire,  are 
in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 

The  form  probably  belongs  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  if  not 
indeed  to  the  Late  Celtic  or  Early  Iron  Age. 


Fig.  471.— Montgomeryshire. 


A  torque  about  5  inches  in  diameter,  described  as  of  copper,  made  of 
a  simple  wire,  with  the  ends  turned  back  so  as  to  form  hooks,  and  on 
each  a  lenticular  button  of  metal,  was  found  near  Winslow,  Bucks,  *  and 
may  also  be  Late  Celtic. 

Another  form  of  torque  is  made  from  a  stout  wire  expanding  into  small 
flat  discs  at  the  end,  a  type  which  is  also  common  among  bracelets  both 
in  bronze  and  gold.  A  torque  of  this  kind,  together  with  a  bracelet,  is 
shown  in  Fig.  471,  kindly  lent  by  the  Council  of  the  Society  of  Anti- 
quaries. 

These  objects  were  found  with  seven  others  in  the  parish  of  Llanrhaiadar- 
yn-Mochnant,  Montgomeryshire.!  One  of  them  is  said  to  have  had 
pendants  upon  it.  Several  of  them  were  too  small  to  have  served  as 
torques  for  the  neck,  and  were  most  probably  bracelets  or  anklets.  To 
these  penannular  ornaments  I  shall  have  to  refer  further  on. 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xi.  p.  429,  pi.  xix.  3. 

t  froc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  467;  "Montgom.  Coll.,"  vol.  iii.  p.  419 ;  vol.  iv. 
p.  247. 


LATE-CELTIC   TORQUES.  381 

The  other  varieties  of  torques  found  in  Britain  seem  decidedly  to 
belong  to  the  Late  Celtic  rather  than  to  the  Bronze  Period,  so  that  a  brief 
notice  of  them  will  suflice.  They  are  frequently  made  in  two  halves, 
hinged  or  dowelled  together,  and  are  often  decorated  with  a  series  of 
ornamental  beads. 

A  collar  found  in  Lochar  Moss,  Dumfries-shire,  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum.*  About  one-third  of  it  is  formed  by  a  solid  piece  of  bronze  of 
flat  section,  having  the  face  ornamented  with  a  peculiar  wavy  pattern 
and  the  outer  rim  with  cabled  lines.  The  rest  consists  of  fluted  melon-like 
beads  with  pulley-shaped  collars  between  them.  They  appear  to  have 
been  strung  on  an  iron  wire. 

A  portion  of  another  collar  found  at  Perdeswell,f  Claines,  near  Wor- 
cester, has  the  iron  wire  still  preserved.  The  ornamental  beads  are  flatter, 
with  leaf -shaped  projections  upon  them,  and  between  them  are  smaller 
pulley-like  beads. 

Another,  formed  in  much  the  same  fashion  as  that  from  Lochar  Moss, 
was  found  at  Mow-road,  Eochdale,  Lancashire.  J  This  was  in  halves, 
dowelled  together  with  iron  pins. 

Another,  entirely  of  bronze,  is  made  in  two  pieces,  one  part  re- 
sembling a  row  of  beads,  the  other  engraved  like  a  closely  plaited  cord, 
and  was  found  at  Embsay,  near  Skipton,  Yorkshire.  § 

A  torque,  weighing  no  less  than  3  Ibs.  10  ozs.  avoirdupois,  was  found 
in  the  parish  of  AVraxall,  Somerset.  ||  This  also  is  in  halves,  with  pins  to 
form  the  joint.  It  is  described  as  appearing  to  have  been  adorned  with 
precious  stones.  Possibly,  like  some  other  objects  of  Late  Celtic  manu- 
facture, it  may  have  been  inlaid  with  enamel  of  different  colours. 

Bracelets  of  the  same  type  as  the  torque  and  bracelet  shown  in 
Fig.  471  have  not  unfrequently  been  found  in  Britain,  though, 
perhaps,  they  are  less  common  in  bronze  than  in  the  more  precious 
metal,  gold. 

They  are  sometimes  slightly  hollowed  at  the  expanding  ends.  One 
found  with  the  hoard  at  Marden,  Kent,^[  is  of  this  kind.  Another  plain 
penannular  bracelet  tapers  off  at  the  ends  instead  of  expanding.  This 
latter  is  too  small  for  an  adult  person. 

One  found,  with  various  other  bronze  relics,  at  Ty  Mawr,  on  Holyhead 
Mountain,**  expands  at  one  end  and  tapers  at  the  other.  As  is  often  the 
case,  the  inner  side  of  the  ring  is  flatter  than  the  outer. 

One,  2f  inches  by  2  inches  inside,  expanding  at  each  end,  was  in  the 
Heathery  Burn  Cave  hoard.  Some  others  were  also  found  there. 

In  some  instances  the  section  of  the  metal,  instead  of  being  rounded,  is 
nearly  square.  Two  such,  tapering  towards  the  ends,  were  found  in  Dor- 
setshire, j-f  with  the  torques  already  mentioned,  and  are  now  in  the  British 
Museum. 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xxxiv.  p.  83,  pi.  xi.;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  148;  Arch.,  xxxii.  p.  400. 
t  Arch.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  554. 

Arch.,  vol.  xxv.  p.  595 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  167. 

Arch.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  517,  pi.  xxiii ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  32. 

Arch.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  521. 

IT  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258,  pi.  xiii.  2,  3. 
**  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  367  ;  vol.  xxiv.  p.  254. 
•\-\-Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  i.  p.  234. 


382 


TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.        [CHAP.  XVIII. 


Three  plain  penannular  bracelets  were  in  the  hoard  of  palstaves  and 
socketed  celts  found  at  Wallington,  Northumberland. 

Several  have  been  found  in  Scotland.  Two  such  bracelets,  the  one 
slender  and  the  other  thick,  were  found  at  Achtertyre,  Moray  shire,*  in 
company  with  a  socketed  celt,  a  spear-head,  Fig.  383,  another  spear-head, 


Fig.  472.— Achtertyre. 


and  some  fragments  of  other  bracelets  and  of  tin.  One  of  these  is  shown 
full-size  in  Fig.  472. 

Another,  2£  inches  in  greatest  diameter,  slightly  thickened  at  the  ex- 
tremities, was  found  in  a  peat  moss  at  Conage,  Banff  shire,  f 

Other  penannular  armlets,  one  of  which  is  shown  as  Fig.  473,  were 


Fig.  473.—  Redhill. 


found  with  socketed  celts  at  Redhill,  Premnay,  Aberdeenshire,  \  and  are 
now  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh  ;  as  is  another  found  with 
burnt  bones  near  Preston  Tower,  East  Lothian. 

This  very  simple  penannular  form  of  bracelet  is  found  all  over  the 
world,  and  is  indeed  the  form  of  necessity  adopted  wherever  it  became 
the  fashion  to  wear  thick  metal  wire  round  the  arm.  It  was  common 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435.  t  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  377. 

%  P.  S.  A.  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  138. 


PENANNULAR    BRACELETS.  383 

among  the  ancient  Assyrians,  and  several  bronze  bracelets  of  this  form 
from  Tel  Sifr,  in  South  Babylonia,  are  in  the  British  Museum.  The 
hammered  copper  bracelets  of  North  America*  are  usually  penannular. 

Two  very  massive  penannular  armlets,  formed  of  rounded  bronze  fully 
£  inch  in  diameter,  and  weighing  about  12  ozs.  each,  were  found  with 
an  agate  bead  and  a  spindle-whorl  in  a  tumulus  near  Peninnis  Head,  in 
the  Scilly  Isles.f  One  of  these  is  shown  in  Fig.  474. 

An  imperfect  armlet  of  thick  bronze  wire  was  found  in  a  barrow  at 
Wetton,  J  by  the  late  Mr.  Bateman. 

Four  plain  armillee  of  bronze  found  with  the  spiral  ring,  Fig.  489,  and 
with  a  palstave,  in  "VVoolmer  Forest,  Hants,  are  also  in  the  Bateman 
Collection.  §  As  already  mentioned,  two  small  torques  and  a  celt  are  said 
to  have  been  found  with  them.  || 

Ornamented  bracelets,  such  as  have  been  found  in  abundance  in  the 


Fig.  474.-Scilly.       *  Fig.  475.— Liss. 


Swiss  Lake-dwellings,  and  such  as  are  common  in  most  continental 
countries,  are  scarce  in  Britain. 

Tn  the  British  Museum  are  two  bracelets,  slightly  oval  in  section,  and 
engraved  with  parallel  lines,  chevrons,  &c.,  as  will  be  seen  by  Fig.  475. 
They  were  found  at  Liss,  Hampshire.  Though  the  two  ends  are  brought 
more  closely  together  than  usual  in  continental  examples,  the  general 
character  of  these  bracelets  is  much  like  that  of  some  French  and  German 
specimens.  The  patina  upon  them  closely  resembles  that  on  the  celt  Fig.  17, 
also  found  at  Liss ;  so  they  were  probably  deposited  together. 

A  curious  penannular  armlet  with  flat  broad  ends,  and  ornamented 
with  punctured  markings,  was  found  with  another  armlet  of  smaller 
diameter,  but  plain,  more  massive,  and  broader,  together  with  the  remains 

*  Schoolcraft,  "  Ethn.  Res.,"  vol.  i.  p.  92  ;  Squier  and  Davis, "  Anc.  Mon.  Miss.  Vail.," 
p.  204. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  96  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  pp.  406,  422  ;  Borlase, 
"  Naenia  Corn.,"  p.  162. 

%  "Ten  Years'  Digg.,"  p.  167. 

§  "  CataL,"  p.  22 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  83. 

||  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  88. 


384 


TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.        [CHAP.  XVIII. 


of  a  skeleton,  at  Stoke  Prior,*  Worcestershire.  It  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum,  and  is  represented  in  Fig.  476.  It  may  belong  to  a  later  period 
than  that  of  which  I  am  treating,  and  is  possibly  Saxon. 

Fig.  477,  kindly  lent  by  the  Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of 
Scotland,  shows  another  form  of  armlet,  made  from  a  bar  of  nearly  semi- 


Fig.  476.— Stoke  Prior. 


circular  section,  bent  into  a  circular  form.  The  original,  together  with 
another  of  the  same  kind,  were  found  near  Stobo  Castle,  f  Peebles-shire, 
beneath  a  flat  stone,  and  lying  on  a  large  boulder,  under  which  was  a 
collection  of  small  stones,  burnt  and  with  apparently  calcined  bones 
among  them. 

Another  armlet  (3  inches)  of  the  same  type  was  found  with  an  urn 


Fig.  477.—  Stobo  Castle. 


containing  burnt  bones  in  a  cairn  in  the  parish  of  Lanark.]:  A  bronze 
spear-head  is  stated  to  have  been  found  with  it. 

One  of  the  bracelets  from  the  find  at  Camenz,  §  in  Saxony,  is  of  nearly 
the  same  type. 

Two  circular  armlets,  one  with  the  ends  slightly  apart,  were  found  in 
Dorsetshire,  one  in  the  parish  of  Milton.  ||  I  have  an  imperfect  armlet  of 
this  kind,  found  with  a  palstave,  at  Winterhay  Green,  ILninster,  Somerset. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  200.  The  Council  of  the  Institute  have  kindly  lent  this 
figure. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  277. 

J  Arch.  Asaoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xvii.  p.  Ill,  pi.  xii.  2  ;  vol.  x.  p.  8. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  332. 

||  "  Barrow  Diggers,"  p.  77,  pi.  v.  14,  15. 


BEADED   AND    FLITTED    BRACELETS. 


385 


A  penannular  armlet  of  bronze,  with  compressed  oval  knobs  at  the 
extremities,  was  found  by  Mr.  F.  C.  Lukis,  with  a  jet  armlet,  in  the 
cromlech  of  La  Roche  qui  sonne*  in  Guernsey,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  478. 
The  scale  has  been  said  to  be  one-third,  though  from  information  kindly 
furnished  to  me  by  the  Eev.  W.  C.  Lukis,  F.S.A.,  it  appears  to  be  one-half. 

A  somewhat  different  and  more  elegantly  ornamented  armlet  from 
Cornwall  f  is  shown  in  Fig.  479. 

A  bronze  armilla,  made  from  a  flat  ribbon  of  metal,  £  inch  broad,  and 


Fig.  478.— Guernsey. 


Fig.  479.— Cornwall. 


ornamented  outside  with  a  neatly  engraved  lozengy  pattern,  was  found 
with  an  interment  in  a  barrow  at  Castern,J  near  Wetton,  Staffordshire. 

Another,  about  1£  inch  wide,  ornamented  with  four  parallel  bands  of 
vertical  lines,  with  chevrons  at  the  end,  was  found  in  a  barrow  at 
Normanton,§  Wilts,  encircling  the 
arm  of  a  skeleton,  and  is  shown 
in  Fig.  480.  In  this  example  the 
ends  overlap. 

Another,  with  a  series  of  small 
longitudinal  beads  or  mouldings 
upon  it,  was  found  near  Lake, 
Wilts,  and  is  in  the  collection  of 
the  Eev.  E.  Duke.  Some  plain 
penannular  bracelets  from  that 
district  are  in  the  same  collection. 

An  armlet  of  nearly  the  same 
character,  but  narrower,  was  found 
in  Thor's  Cave,||  near  Wetton, 
Derbyshire.  Remains  of  Late 
Celtic  and  of  Eoman  date  were 
found  in  the  same  cave. 

A  fluted  bracelet  was  found  with  rings  and  other  objects  at  Edington 
Burtle,  Somersetshire.^ 

A  bracelet  of  bronze,  of  which  some  of  the  fragments  are  represented 
in  Fig.  481,  was  found  with  a  bronze  torque  and  a  two-looped  palstave 

*  Arch.  Assoe.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  344  (I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  use  of  this 
cut) ;  Arch.,  vol.  xxxv.  p.  247  ;  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  417. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  pp.  406,  430. 

I  Bateman,  '*>Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  167. 

§  Hoare's  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  160;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  469,  fig.  172.     I  am  in- 
debted to  the  Council  of  the  Soc.  Ant.  for  the  use  of  this  cut. 

||  "  Reliquary,"  vol.  vi.  p.  211,  pi.  xx.  1 ;  Dawkins,  "Cave  Hunting,"  p.  129. 

H  Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Soc.  Proc.,  vol.  v.  1854,  p.  91. 

C  C 


Fig.  480. — Normanton. 


386 


TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.  XVIII. 


at  West  Buckland,*  Somersetshire.  It  is  flat  on  the  inside,  so  that  the 
ornaments  appear  to  have  been  cast  in  a  mould,  though  subsequently  the 
more  delicate  work  was  added  by  means  of  punches  or  gravers. 

Another  form  of  bracelet,  probably  of  earlier  date  than  some  of  those 
represented  in  the  previous  figures,  is  of  the  type  shown  in  Fig.  482.  It 
consists  of  a  long  bar  of  bronze,  either  circular  or  subquadrangular  in 
section,  doubled  over  so  as  to  leave  a  broad  loop  in  the  middle,  and  then 
curved  round  so  as  to  form  the  bracelet,  the  two  ends  of  the  bar  being 
bent  over  to  form  a  hook,  which  engages  in  the  central  loop.  That 


Fig.  481.— West  Buckland.       J 

shown  in  the  figure  was  formerly  in  the  collection  of  the  late  Sir  Walter 
Trevelyan,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  As  will  be  seen,  the 
edges  are  in  some  parts  minutely  serrated.  The  original  was  discovered 
with  two  others,  and  a  ring  of  the  same  metal,  in  a  moss  at  Ham  Cross, 
near  Crawley,  Sussex. 

Four  others,  forming  two  pairs,  neatly  placed  round  a  torque,  were 
found  at  Hollingbury  Hill,f  near  Brighton,  as  already  described.  They 
are  now  in  the  British  Museum.  I  have  seen  two  others  of  the  same 
kind  which  were  found  at  Pyecombe,  Sussex.  They  are  in  the  collection 


Fig.  482.— Ham  Cross. 


Fig.  483.— Heathery  Bum. 


of  Mrs.  Dickinson,  of  Hurstpierpoint.  Another  was  found  in  a  barrow 
near  Brighton,  £  with  the  long  pin  already  mentioned,  and  is  now  at 
Alnwick  Castle.  This  was  slightly  ornamented  with  a  kind  of  herring- 
bone pattern. 

Bracelets  constructed  on  the  same  principle  are  sometimes  formed  of 
much  thinner  wire.  One  from  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  §  already  so  often 
mentioned,  is  shown  in  Fig.  483. 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  107.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Institute  for  the  use  of  this 
cut.  See  Figs.  468  and  87. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  v.  p.  323. 

%  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  i.  p.  148 ;  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ii.  p.  260. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  131.  For  the  use  of  this  cut  I  am  indebted  to  the 
Council  of  the  Society. 


LATE-CELTIC   BRACELETS.  387 

Another  of  the  same  size  and  character,  but  made  of  even  thinner  wire, 
was  found  with  a  bronze  razor,  a  button,  and  other  antiquities,  in  the  bed 
of  a  stream  near  Llangwyllog  Church,*  Anglesea.  These  objects  are  now 
in  the  British  Museum.  The  type  is  not  confined  to  Britain,  for  a  bracelet 
clasping  in  the  same  manner  was  found  in  the  Lac  du  Bourget.f 

Penannular  bracelets,  like  Fig.  473,  with  the  ends  slightly  expanding, 
have  been  not  unfrequently  found  in  Ireland.  One  engraved  by  Wilde  J 
is  described  as  of  pure  red  copper. 

In  many  there  are  large  cup-shaped  ends  at  about  right  angles  to  each 
other.  One  from  Co.  Cavan  is  shown  in  Fig.  484.  I  have  another  of 
the  same  type,  but  much  smaller  and  lighter,  from  Ballymoney,  Co. 
Antrim. 

They  much  resemble  the  manillas  or  ring-money  in  use  on  the  West 
Coast  of  Africa,  but  are  more  cup-shaped  at  the  ends.  It  appears  possible 


Fig.  484.— Co.  Cavan. 


that,  like  some  large  Irish  rings  which  will  subsequently  be  described, 
they  are  not  actually  bracelets.  The  other  armillse  engraved  by  Wilde 
appear  to  be  of  later  date  than  the  Bronze  Period.  The  same  may  be 
said  of  the  elegant  bracelet  shown  full  size  in  Fig.  485,  which  is  certainly 
Late  Celtic.  It  was  found  by  Canon  Green  well,  F.K.S.,  on  the  right 
arm  of  a  female  skeleton  in  a  barrow  at  Cowlam,§  Yorkshire,  and  is 
similar  to  some  found  at  Arras,  ||  in  the  same  county. 

Another  somewhat  plainer  bracelet,  with  a  short  dowel  at  one  end, 
fitting  into  a  socket  at  the  other,  so  as  to  form  an  almost  invisible  joint, 
was  found  with  a  fibula,  Fig.  498,  on  the  skeleton  of  an  aged  woman  in 
another  of  the  Cowlam^j  barrows,  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  486. 

Another  bronze  armlet  of  the  same  period  was  found  in  a  barrow  in 
the  parish  of  Crosby  Garrett,**  Westmoreland.  It  encircled  the  right 
arm  of  a  skeleton,  and  is  penannular,  "oval  in  section,  and  unorna- 
mented,  except  in  having  a  series  of  notches  along  both  edges." 

*  Arch.  Jotirn.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74. 
t  Perrin,  "Etude.  pr£h.  sur  la  Sav.,"  pi.  xviii.  6. 

%  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  570,  fig.  479.  §  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  210. 

||  "  Cran.  Brit.,"  pi.  xii.  B  4  ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  474. 
II  Greenwell's  "British  Barrows,"  p.  209.  **  Op.  cit.,  p.  386. 

C  C  2 


388  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.  XVIII. 

Many  bracelets  of  Late  Celtic  date  have  been  found  at  various  times  in 
Scotland.  Some  of  these  are  of  very  ornate  design,  and  extremely 
massive;  while  on  others  a  repomse  pattern  has  been  worked  upon  a 
plate  of  thin  bronze.  Such  bracelets  hardly  come  within  the  scope  of 
the  present  work,  but  a  few  references  to  engravings  of  them  are  sub- 
joined : — 

Aboyne,  Aberdeenshire  (Arch.  Jburn.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74  ;  Wilson's  "  Preh. 

Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  ii.  pp.  136,  139). 

Alvah,  Banffshire  (Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  11,  pi.  iii.  1). 
Muthill,  Perthshire,  now  in  the  British  Museum  (Arch.,  vol.  xxviii. 

p.  435). 
Plunton  Castle,  Kirkcudbright  (Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  194;  Proc. 

Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  236). 
Strathdon,  Aberdeenshire  (Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  13,  pi.  iii.  2). 


Fig.  486.—  Cowlam. 


Among  hoards  of  bronze  antiquities  belonging  to  the  latter  part 
of  the  Bronze  Period,  rings  of  various  sizes  are  of  not  unfrequent 
occurrence.  They  are  usually  plain  and  of  circular  section,  as  if 
formed  of  a  piece  of  cylindrical  wire,  though  actually  cast  solid, 
and  do  not  for  the  most  part  seem  to  require  any  illustrations. 
Some  also  are  lozenge-shaped  ,  in  section. 

In  the  hoard  found  at  Marden,*  Kent,  there  were  six  perfect  bronze 
rings,  varying  in  diameter  from  1£  to  If  inch.  In  the  Heathery  Burn 
Cave  were  numerous  rings  of  circular  section,  and  varying  in  thickness 
from  £  inch  to  1^  inch  in  diameter.  Many  of  these  are  now  in  the  collection 
of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.K.S.  One,  2£  inches  in  diameter,  was  in  the 
hoard  found  at  Westow,f  Yorkshire,  and  may  have  been  an  armlet. 
Several  stout  rings,  about  1  inch  in  diameter,  "probably  cast  in  moulds," 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258.  f  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  59. 


HOLLOW    RINGS.  doy 

were  found  with  various  other  antiquities  in  bronze  at  Ty  Mawr,*  Holy- 
head,  and  a  number  of  rings  of  various  sizes,  from  f  inch  to  1^  inch  in 
diameter,  were  found  in  the  deposit  at  Llangwyllog,t  Anglesea.  There 
were  also  three  small  rings  in  the  great  hoard  found  at  Pant-y-maen,  J 
Grlancych. 

Several  rings,  some  of  lozenge-shaped  section  and  of  delicate  workman- 
ship, were  found  in  the  hoard  at  Taunton,  §  with  the  pin  and  other  objects 
already  mentioned. 

Such  rings  may  have  served  various  purposes,  but  were  probably  used 
as  means  of  connection  between  different  straps  or  accoutrements.  Canon 
Greenwell  has  called  my  attention  to  two  separate  instances  of  two  rings 
being  found  together,  in  company  with  a  bronze  sword,  in  one  case 
near  Medomsley,  Durham,  and  in  the  other  near  Rothbury,  Northumber- 
land. 

The  rings  found  with  remains  of  chariots  at  Hamden  Hill,||  near 
Montacute,  Somersetshire,  appear  to  be  of  Late  Celtic  date,  and  to  be 
hollow.  A  hollow  ring,  however,  If  inch  in  diameter,  and  made  from 
a  strip  of  bronze,  fashioned  into  a  tube 
and  left  open  on  the  inner  side,  was 
found  with  a  socketed  celt,  a  gouge, 
and  other  objects  of  bronze,  at  Mel- 
bourn,^  Cambridgeshire.  Many  of 
those  from  the  cemetery  at  Hallstatt 
are  of  this  kind,  wrought  from  a  thin 
plate  of  metal.  Some  hollow  rings 
from  Ireland  will  subsequently  be 
mentioned. 

Near  Trillick,**  Co.  Tyrone,  a  pin 
passing  transversely  through  the  body 
of  two  rings  (see  Fig.  496)  was  found,  Kg 

and  with  it  two  large  rings  about  3£ 
inches  in  diameter,  and  four  smaller,  about  2  inches.  These  latter  appear 
to  be  hollow,  with  probably  a  clay  core  inside.  With  these  objects  a 
socketed  celt  and  a  bronze  hammer  were  found. 

Nearly  six  hundred  bronze  rings  are  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish 
Academy. 

Some  of  the  Irish  rings  are  cast  in  pairs,  like  a  figure  of  8.ff  Others 
of  large  size  have  smaller  rings  cast  upon  them.  That  shown  in  Fig.  487, 
borrowed  from  Wilde,  J|  is  4£  inches  in  diameter,  with  rings  of  1£  inches 
diameter  upon  it.  Sir  W.  Wilde  was  inclined  to  regard  it  as  a  bangle 
with  two  rings  by  which  to  suspend  it,  but  this  appears  to  me  very 
doubtful.  I  have  an  almost  identical  example  of  the  form  from  Bally- 
money,  Co.  Antrim. 

A  gold  ring,  4J  inches  in  diameter,  with  a  single  small  ring  playing 
upon  it,  from  the  great  Clare  find,  is  figured  by  Wilde.§§  He  states  that 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  256;  Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  483. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74.  J  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  x.  p.  224. 

§  Pring,  "The  Brit,  and  Horn,  on  the  Site  of  Taunton,"  p.  50. 

||  Arch.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  39.  IT  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  294. 

**  Journ.  Hist,  and  Arch.  Assoc.  of  Ireland,  3rd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  164. 

tt  "  Vallancey,"  vol.  iv.  pi.  xiv.  8 ;  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  578,  fig.  490. 

H  "Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  570,  fig.  480. 

§$  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  46,  fig.  573. 


390  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.  XVIII. 

"  similar  articles  are  occasionally  observed  sculptured  upon  the  breasts 
of  the  statues  of  ancient  Eoman  generals,  the  small  ring  being  attached 
to  the  dress." 

Some  few  bronze  ornaments,  which  have  been  thought  to  be 
finger  rings,  have  from  time  to  time  been  found  associated  with 
other  objects  of  the  same  metal,  such  as  armlets,  torques,  &c. 

One  found  with  the  armlets  and  palstaves  in  "Woolmer  Forest,*  Hants, 
as  already  mentioned,  is  shown  in  Fig.  488.  It  has  been  formed  from  a 
small  quadrangular  bar  of  metal,  cylindrical  at  the  ends,  twisted  after 
the  manner  of  an  ordinary  torque,  and  subsequently  coiled  into  a  spiral 
ring.  Mr.  Bateman  f  describes  it  as  a  finger  ring.  With  it  was  also 
another  twisted  bronze  ring  of  the  same  kind,  but  of  only  one  coil.  It 
appears  doubtful  whether  these  rings  were  not  more  of  the  nature  of 
ornamental  beads.  It  will  be  remembered  that  three  spiral  rings  of  the 
same  kind,  but  plain  and  of  about  four  coils  each,  were  found  on  the 


Fig.  488.— Woolmer  Forest.       J  Fig.  489.— Dumbarton. 

extremities  of  the  torque  discovered  at  Hollingbury  Hill,*  Sussex.  They 
were  considerably  too  large  to  fit  on  the  torque,  and  were  regarded  as 
intended  in  some  way  to  fasten  the  garment.  Some  rings  of  this  kind 
were  found  with  torques  near  Amesbury,  as  already  mentioned.  A  ring 
of  a  single  coil,  but  made  from  a  twisted  bar  like  that  in  the  figure,  was 
in  the  hoard  found  at  Camenz,§  Saxony,  in  which  also  were  fragments 
of  torques. 

I  have  three  small  twisted  penannular  rings  of  gold  which  were  found 
with  a  small  torque  of  the  same  metal  near  Carcassonne,  Aude.  They 
are  of  different  sizes  and  weights,  but  are  all  too  small  for  the  finger  or 
for  ear-rings.  One  of  them  is  indeed  too  small  to  pass  over  the  re-curved 
end  of  the  torque,  but  the  ends  may  possibly  have  been  pinched  together 
since  it  was  found.  I  am  not  aware  that  any  of  the  rings  were  ever 
actuaUy  upon  the  torque,  though  I  have  reason  to  believe  they  were 
found  with  it. 

Mr.  Franks  has  recently  presented  to  the  British  Museum  a  gold  torque 
from  Lincolnshire,  which  has  three  banded  rings  of  gold,  strung  like 
beads  upon  it. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  ii.  p.  83.     The  cut  is  kindly  lent  by  the  Council. 

t "  Catal.,"  p.  22.  +  Sup.,  p.  378  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol .  v.  p.  323. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  332* 


RINGS    FOUND    WITH   TORQUES.  391 

Some  small  penannular  rings  found  on  a  gold  torque  at  Boyton  have 
already  been  mentioned. 

The  penannular  rings  so  often  found  in  Ireland,  and  commonly  called 
ring  money,  may  after  all  be  of  the  nature  of  beads. 

The  large  hollow  penannular  ornaments  made  of  thin  gold,  and  nearly 
triangular  in  section,  seem  also  to  be  of  the  nature  of  beads  or  possibly 
clasps.  Straps  passed  through  the  narrow  notch  would  require  some 
trouble  to  take  out ;  but  still  such  beads  could  be  dislodged  from  their 
string  without  its  ends  being  unfastened.  The  ornament  shown  in  Fig. 
489  was  found  near  Dumbarton.* 

Others,  similar,  have  been  found  in  Anglesea,  Heathery  Burn  Cave, 
near  Alnwick,f  and  in  other  places.  They  occur  also  in  Ireland.^  They 
have  frequently  been  found  associated  with  armlets.  Some  Egyptian 
rings  of  carnelian,  ivory,  and  other  materials  have  similar  notches  through 
them.  They  have,  however,  been  regarded  as  ear-rings. 

Bronze  finger  rings  seem  to  have  been  in  occasional  use. 

In  a  perished  urn  with  burnt  bones,  found  with  several  others,  one 
containing  a  barbed  flint  arrow-head,  in  the  cemetery  at  Stanlake,§ 
Oxfordshire,  there  was  a  spiral  bronze  finger  ring  of  the  plainest  form, 
the  only  fragment  of  metal  brought  to  light  during  nearly  a  month's 
excavations  by  Mr.  Akerman  and  Mr.  Stone.  What  may  have  been  a 
finger  ring  was  also  found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  ||  Durham.  It  is 
formed  of  stout  wire,  the  ends  expanding,  and  slightly  overlapping  each 
other,  and  is  i  inch  in  diameter. 

In  the  hoard  of  bronze  antiquities  found  near  Edington  Burtle,^f  Somer- 
setshire, were  several  small  rings ;  but  with  one  exception  they  are  hardly 
such  as  could  have  served  for  finger  rings.  This  exceptional  ring  is 
penannular,  and  fluted  externally  like  the  bracelet  found  with  it  in  the  same 
hoard.  The  form  is  not  unlike  that  of  the  gold  ring  engraved  by  Wilde  ** 
as  his  Fig.  609. 

Another  form  of  ornament,  the  ear-ring,  appears  to  have  been 
known  in  Britain  during  the  Bronze  Period.  In  two  of  the 
barrows  on  the  Yorkshire  Wolds,  explored  by  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.S.,  female  skeletons  were  found  accompanied  by  such  orna- 
ments. 

In  a  barrow  at  Cowlam,ff  "touching  the  temporal  bones,  which  were 
stained  green  by  the  contact,  were  two  ear-rings  of  bronze.  They  have 
been  made  by  beating  the  one  end  of  a  piece  of  bronze  flat,  and  forming 
the  other  end  into  a  pin-shaped  termination.  This  pin  had  been  passed 
through  the  lobe  of  the  ear  and  then  bent  round,  the  other  and  flat  end 
being  bent  over  it.  Thus  the  ear-ring  must  have  been  permanently  fixed 
in  the  ear."  One  of  these  rings  is,  by  Canon  Green  well's  kindness,  shown 

*  Proc,  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  iii.  p.  24,  whence  this  cut  is  borrowed. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p.  295. 

I  "  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  36. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xxxvii.  p.  368. 

||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  426. 

f    Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist.  Soc.  Proc.,  vol.  v.  1854,  p.  91. 

**  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  81. 

ft  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  223. 


392  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.   XVIII. 


as  Fig.  490,  as  is  one  from  Goodrnanham,*  in  Fig.  491.  In  the  latter 
case  there  was  a  bronze  awl,  or  drill,  behind  the  head  ;  the  ear-ring  here 
figured  was  at  the  right  ear,  and  its  fellow,  in  a  more  broken  condition, 


Fig.  490.— Cowlam. 


Fig.  491.— Goodmanham. 


lay  under  the  left  shoulder.  The  better  preserved  of  the  two  is  some- 
what imperfect,  and  may,  I  think,  have  formed  a  perfect  circle  when 
whole. 

Mr.  Bateman  records  finding  in  a  barrow  called  Stakor  Hill,f  near 


Fig.  492.— Orton. 


Burton,  a  female  skeleton,  "the  mastoid  bones  of  which  were  dyed 
green  from  contact  with  two  small  pieces  of  thin  bronze  bent  in  the  middle 
just  sufficiently  to  clasp  the  edge  or  lobe  of  the  ear."  With  the  skeleton 

*«Brit.  Barrows,"  p.   324.     For  Fig.  491  I  am  indebted  to  the  Delegates  of  the 
Clarendon  Press. 

t  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  80. 


EAR-RINGS.  393 

was  a  flint  "javelin  head,"  and  Mr.  Bateman  considered  the  interment 
to  be  the  oldest  he  had  met  with  in  which  metal  was  present. 

By  way  of  illustration,  a  much  longer  form  of  trough-shaped  ear-ring 
may  be  adduced,  though  the  metal  in  this  instance  is  gold  and  not  bronze. 
That  shown  in  Fig.  492  was  found  with  another  in  a  stone  cist  at  Orton, 
Moray  shire.* 

It  seems  possible  that  a  lunette  or  diadem  of  gold  was  buried  with 
these  ear-rings. 

A  pair  of  circular  embossed  plates,  with  a  beaded  ring  on  each  and  a 
smaller  disc  above,  were  found  in  a  tumulus  near  Lake,  Wilts,  and  have 
been  regarded  as  ear-rings.  They  are  in  the  collection  of  the  Eev.  E. 
Duke. 

In  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  f  is  another  gold  ornament 
of  the  same  form  as  Fig.  492.  It  is,  however,  smaller,  and  the  lower 
part  is  at  present  flat.  Gold  penannular  rings  of  torque-like  patterns, 
pointed  at  each  end,  and  which  may  have  been  ear-rings,  and  not  bead- 
like  ornaments,  are  not  uncommon  in  Ireland  and  Britain.]:  Eings  of 
nearly  the  same  kind  are  still  in  use  in  Northern  Africa.  Plain  double- 
pointed  penannular  ear-rings  in  bronze  are  also  found,  but  I  am  uncertain 
as  to  the  period  to  which  they  should  be  assigned.  Some  appear  to  be  of 
Saxon  date.  § 

I  have  a  pair  of  ear-rings  of  circular  form  from  Hallstatt,  about  2  inches 
in  diameter,  of  hollow  bronze,  made  from  a  thin  plate,  and  with  one  end 
pointed  which  fits  into  a  socket  at  the  other  end.  Other  ear-rings  of 
bronze,  ||  from  the  same  cemetery,  have  a  small  ring  encircling  them,  to 
which,  in  one  instance,  three  small  spherical  bells  are  attached. 

In  the  Laibach  Museum  are  some  bronze  ear-rings  of  the  Early  Iron 
Age,  much  like  those  from  Goodmanham,  but  broader. 

Ear-rings  of  the  Bronze  Period  appear  to  be  almost  unknown  in  France. 
I  have,  however,  specimens  found  with  a  hoard  of  bronze  socketed  celts, 
fragments  of  swords,  spear-heads,  bracelets,  and  a  variety  of  other  obj  ects 
at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens,  about  1872. 

They  are  two  in  number,  in  form  like  Fig.  490,  but  rather  shorter. 
One  of  them  is  coiled  up,  and  the  other  has  the  broad  part  nearly  flat. 
Each  is  ornamented  with  some  parallel  lines  stamped  in  across  the  broader 
part.  Several  small  hollow  and  some  solid  rings,  circular,  semicircular, 
and  flattened  in  section,  were  in  the  same  hoard. 

Some  few  objects  of  bead-like  character  have  from  time  to  time 
been  found  in  barrows  and  with  other  bronze  objects.  Dr.  Thur- 
nam^j  describes  a  tubular  bronze  bead,  1|  inch  long,  found  in  a 
barrow  in  Dorset,  and  now  in  Mr.  Durden's  collection.  He  thinks 
the  bead  mentioned  by  Sir  R.  Colt  Hoare  as  found  in  a  barrow 
near  Fovant  **  may  have  been  the  spheroidal  head  of  the  bronze 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  viii.  p.  30. 

t  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  40,  fig.  570. 

1  Op.  cit.,  p.  38. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  88. 

||  Von  Sacken,  "  Grabf .  v.  Hallst.,"  Taf.  xvii.  4,  6. 

IT  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  470. 

**  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  243. 


394  TORQUES,    BRACELETS,    RINGS,    EAR-RINGS,    ETC.       [CHAP.  XVIII. 

pin  with  which  it  was  found.     Some  beads  of  amber  and  jet  were, 
however,  discovered  with  it. 

A  notched  head  of  tin,  like  a  number  of  small  heads  strung  together, 
accompanied  a  little  pin  of  copper  or  bronze,  most  probably  an  awl,  and 
some  conical  buttons  of  bone  or  ivory,  in  a  barrow  on  Sutton  Verney 
Down,*  in  which  there  had  been  deposited  a  burnt  body.  Hoare  says 
that  "it  is  the  only  article  of  that  metal  we  have  ever  found  in  a  barrow." 

Small  beads,  or  more  probably  drum-shaped  buttons  of  gold,  as  sug- 
gested by  Dr.  Thurnam,f  have  also  been  found  in  the  Wiltshire  barrows. 

Beads  formed  of  joints  of  encrinites,  with  others  formed  of  burnt  clay, 
as  well  as  a  necklace  formed  of  the  shells  of  dentalium,  were  found  in 
a  barrow  near  Winterbourn  Stoke,  j  Glass  beads  of  the  notched  form 
have  been  found  with  burnt  interments,  and  frequently  with  bronze  in- 
struments in  others  of  the  Wiltshire  barrows.  §  Other  beads  have  spiral 
ornaments  in  white  upon  a  blue  ground.  A  blue  glass  bead,  with  three 
yellow  spirals  on  it,  was  found  with  the  point  of  a  bronze  blade  in  a  cist 
with  burnt  bones  in  a  barrow  at  Eddertoun,  Ross-shire.  ||  Such  beads, 
known  as  Clachan  Nathaireach,^f  or  serpent  stones,  have  been  used  as 
charms  for  diseased  cattle  and  other  evils. 

Glass  beads  with  the  same  spiral  ornamentation  have  been  found  in  the 
cemetery  at  Hallstatt,  and  their  presence  in  these  graves  certainly  affords 
an  argument  for  assigning  them  to  a  comparatively  late  period,  or  at  all 
events  to  a  time  when  commerce  with  the  Continent  was  well  established. 

Among  the  objects  found  at  Exning,  Suffolk,**  are  some  "curious 
bullse  "  with  clay  cores,  but  they  appear  to  belong  to  a  later  date. 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  list  of  personal  ornaments  described  in 
the  preceding  pages,  their  forms  are  but  few  and  their  number 
small  in  the  British  Islands,  as  compared  with  those  of  analogous 
objects  found  in  some  continental  countries,  as,  for  instance,  Scan- 
dinavia and  Switzerland.  The  absence  of  several  forms  of  torques 
has  already  been  mentioned ;  the  Danish  and  North  German 
lunette,  or  diadem-like  bandlets,  are  also  never  found  in  this 
country,  though,  perhaps,  the  crescent-shaped  gold  plates  or 
"  minds  "  of  the  Irish  antiquaries  may  represent  the  same  class  of 
ornaments.  Spirals  formed  by  coiling  long  tapering  pieces  of  wire, 
such  as  are  common  in  Scandinavia  and  throughout  Germany,  are 
also  unknown,  and  this  circumstance  affords  an  argument  against 
there  having  been  any  direct  intercourse  in  very  early  days  between 
this  country  and  Etruria,  where  such  spiral  ornaments  abounded. 
Besides  this  absence  of  spirals  formed  of  solid  metal,  the  engraved 

*  "  Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  103.  f  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  525. 

J  Op.  tit.,  114.  A  bead  of  burnt  clay  has  also  been  found  in  a  Westmoreland  barrow. 
"  Brit.  Barrows,"  p.  55. 

§  See  Thurnam,  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  495. 

||  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  313,  pi.  xxi.  f  Ibid. 

*»  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3. 


ABSENCE    OF    CONTINENTAL   FORMS.  395 

spiral  ornament  which  in  some  countries  is  characteristic  of  the 
Bronze  Period  may  be  said  to  be  absolutely  unknown  in  Britain. 
The  nearest  approach  to  it  is  the  ring  ornament  formed  of  concen- 
tric circles. 

The  bracelets  formed  of  cylindrical  coils  of  wire  are  also  un- 
known, as  Avell  as  those  of  hollowed  bronze  with  discoidal  ends, 
such  as  are  so  common  in  the  Swiss  Lake-habitations.  Decorated 
pendants,  like  those  which  are  found  in  Switzerland  and  the  South 
of  France,  are  also  wanting.  Altogether  the  bronze  ornaments  of 
Britain  are  neither  abundant  nor,  as  a  rule,  highly  artistic;  and  it 
would  appear  that  here,  at  all  events,  the  serviceable  qualities  of 
bronze  were  more  highly  appreciated  than  its  decorative  lustre. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    AND    MISCELLANEOUS    OBJECTS. 

THERE  still  remain  to  be  noticed  a  number  of  objects  in  bronze,  of 
some  of  which  the  precise  nature  and  use  are  now  hardly  sus- 
ceptible of  being  determined ;  and  of  others  but  so  few  examples 
are  known  that  they  are  best  placed  in  a  chapter  which,  like  the 
present,  is  intended  to  treat  of  miscellaneous  articles.  It  has 
occasionally  been  observed  of  antiquaries  that  when  at  a  loss  to 
explain  the  use  or  destination  of  some  object  of  bronze  or  brass, 
their  usual  refuge  is  in  the  suggestion  that  it  formed  some  portion 
of  harness,  or  was  what  is  termed  a  horse-trapping.  To  judge  from 
what  may  be  seen  on  the  dray-horses  and  waggon-horses  of  the 
present  day,  future  antiquaries,  in  examining  the  relics  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  will  have  some  justification  in  assigning  a  vast 
number  of  forms  of  ornamental  pendants  and  tongueless  buckles 
to  this  comprehensive  class  of  trappings ;  while  a  number  of 
curious  instruments  of  brass  and  other  alloys,  some  of  them  not 
unlike  complicated  dentists'  Instruments,  will  probably  be  given 
up  in  despair,  though  now  in  most  cases  susceptible  of  being  re- 
cognised by  the  adept  as  destined  to  extract  cartridges  or  their 
cases  from  breech-loading  guns.  If  these  puzzles  await  future 
antiquaries,  those  of  the  present  day  must  be  pardoned  for  occa- 
sionally being  at  fault  as  to  the  destination  of  some  ancient 
instrument  or  ornament,  and  they  may  even  be  forgiven  for 
making  suggestions  as  to  probable  uses  of  such  objects,  provided 
they  do  not  insist  upon  possibilities  being  regarded  as  strong  pro- 
babilities, much  less  as  facts. 

In  Eig.  493  is  shown  full-size  a  mysterious  object,  consisting  of  a  tube 
with  a  slight  collar  at  each  end,  having  on  one  side  a  long  narrow  loop  of 
solid  metal  sub-quadrangular  in  section,  and  on  the  other  an  elongated 
oval  opening,  a  part  of  'the  side  of  which  has  been  broken  away.  It  was 
found  with  a  number  of  socketed  celts,  knives,  and  other  articles  in  the 
hoard  at  Keach  Fen,  Cambridge,  already  often  mentioned.  With  it  was 


LOOPED    SOCKETS. 


397 


also  another  smaller  object  of  the  same  kind,  shown  in  Fig.  494.  This, 
however,  has  the  orifice  in  the  front,  and  not  at  the  side  opposite  the 
loop,  the  section  of  which  in  this  case  is  circular.  One  end  of  the  tube 
is  plugged  up  with  a  bronze  rivet.  The  mouth  of  the  oval  opening  is 
rough,  and  has  no  lip  to  it.  as  in  the  other  case ;  and  within  the  tube 
there  are  remains  of  wood.  I  have  a  broken  specimen  found  at  Malton, 
near  Cambridge,  of  the  same  character  as  Fig.  493,  but  with  the  loop 
round  in  section,  and  both  shorter  and  stouter.  The  end  of  the  tube  is 
cast  with  a  flat  plate  closing  the  aperture,  except  for  a  central  hole  about 
£  inch  in  diameter.  I  have  another  specimen  much  like  Fig.  493,  but 
the  loop  is  longer  and  flatter,  and  beneath  it  the  tube  has  a  long  oval 
opening  with  a  lip  around  it,  as  well  as  a  somewhat  shorter  opening  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  tube.  The  loop  also  has  a  deep  groove  on  its 
inner  side  extending  its  whole  length.  I  am  not  sure  where  this  object 
was  found,  but  there  is  little  doubt  of  its  being  English. 

An  object  like  Fig.  493  was  found  with  socketed  celts,  gouges,  and  ham- 


Fig.  493.— Reach  Fen. 


Fig.  494.— Beach  Fen. 


Fig.  495.— Broadward. 


mers  at  Koseberry  Topping,*  Yorkshire,  in  1826.  With  them  was  a  flat 
quadrangular  whetstone  (?)  and  fragments  of  a  flat  plate  of  bronze,  the 
ends  hollowed  and  with  crescent-shaped  openings  or  lunettes  in  them, 
and  with  staples  for  attachment  at  the  corners.  There  are  three  rivet-holes 
on  the  convex  side  of  the  lunettes. 

Another  object  of  the  same  kind  was  found  with  a  socketed  celt,  a  hollow 
ring,  gouge,  &c.,  at  Melbourn,f  Cambridge.  There  were  two  of  these 
looped  tubes  found  with  spear-heads,  socketed  celts,  broken  swords,  &c., 
near  La  Pierre  du  Villain,  |  Longy,  Alderney. 

In  the  great  hoard  of  bronze  spear-heads,  &c.,  found  at  Broad  ward,  § 
Shropshire,  was  a  short  object  of  this  kind  about  1%  inch  long,  with  the 
loop  as  large  in  diameter  as  the  tube  and  extending  the  whole  length,  so 

*  Arch.  JEliana,  vol.  ii.  p.  213,  pi.  iv. ;  Arch.  Scot.,  vol.  iv.  p.  55,  pi.  vii. 
t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  294.  J  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  10. 

§  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  354.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of  the  Cambrian 
Arch.  Assoc.  for  the  use  of  this  cut. 


398  CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIX. 

as  to  give  it  the  form  of  the  letter  D.  The  orifice  of  the  loop  is  only 
£  inch  long.  This  specimen  is  shown  in  Fig.  495.  Another  seems  to 
have  been  found  at  the  same  time. 

A  fragment  of  another  was  in  the  collection  of  the 
late  Lord  Braybrooke. 

An  example,  like  Fig.  493,  but  somewhat  broken, 
was  in  the  deposit  of  Notre-Dame  d'Or,  now  in  the 
Poitiers  Museum. 

Another  (2f  inches),  almost  identical  with  Fig.  493, 
was  found  in  a  hoard  with  other  objects  near  Amiens, 
and  is  now  in  the  museum  of  that  town. 

Another  of  much  the  same  kind  was  found  at  La 
Parnelle,  Manche.* 

I  have  an  object  from  the  Seine  at  Paris,  which 
appears  to  belong  to  the  same  class  as  the  tubes  lately 
described,  though  without  any  loop.  The  tube  is  in 
this  instance  about  3  inches  long,  with  small  flanges 
at  each  end ;  and  through  the  middle  of  it  is  an  oval 
opening  about  1  inch  by  f  inch,  with  mouth-pieces 
standing  out  on  each  side  of  the  tube,  making  the 
whole  length  of  the  oval  cross-tube  thus  formed 
nearly  1 J  inch.  Each  mouth-piece  has  two  parallel 
beads  running  round  it.  I  am  at  a  loss  to  assign  a 
purpose  to  it. 

Those  with  a  loop  seem  to  me  possibly  intended  as 
clasps  for  leather  straps  or  belts,  one  end  of  which 
passed  through  the  metal  loop  and  was  sewn  or 
fastened  to  the  strap  so  as  to  form  a  loop  of  leather, 
while  a  corresponding  loop  at  the  other  end  was  in- 
serted into  the  oval  mouth-piece,  so  that  a  pin  passed 
down  inside  the  tube  would  go  through  it  and  secure 
it.  This  pin  need  not  have  been  of  metal,  but  of 
some  more  perishable  material. 

The  objection  to  this  view  is  that  the  side  orifice 
in  the  tube  is  not  in  all  cases  opposite  to  the  loop,  but 
in  one  instance  at  least  at  right  angles  to  it.  A  second 
suggestion  is  that  they  were  loops  in  some  manner 
attached  to  wooden  or  leather  scabbards  of  swords, 
which  could  at  any  time  be  detached  by  withdrawing 
a  pin  that  passed  down  the  tube.  Whatever  purpose 
they  served,  they  do  not  appear  to  have  been  perma- 
nently attached  to  any  other  article,  as  in  no  instance 
have  any  rivet-holes  been  observed  in  them. 

Some  of  the  hollow  rings  found  in  Ireland  with 
transverse  perforations  through  them,  appear  also  to 
have  been  made  for  attachment  at  will  to  leather  or 
*    cloth  by  means  of  a  pin  passing  through  the  cross- 
holes,  which  at  once  converted  the  rings  into  brooches  or  buckles  of  a 
peculiar  kind. 

This  purpose  has  already  been  suggested  by  Mr.  T.  0'  Gorman,  in  the  Journal 
of  the  Royal  Historical  and  Archaeological  Association  of  Ireland.]  He  there 
*  Mem. Soc.Ant. Form. ,1827 — 8,pl.xvii.  t  3rdS.,vol.i.p.  164,  whence  thecutis  borrowed. 


RINGS   WITH   TRANSVERSE   PERFORATIONS.  399 

describes  a  bronze  pin  with  two  thick  bronze  rings  upon  it,  which  was 
found  with  two  large  rings  of  bronze,  four  rings  of  about  the  same  size 
as  those  on  the  pin,  a  large  socketed  celt,  and  a  bronze  hammer,  in  what 
appears  to  have  been  a  sepulchre  near  Trillick,  Co.  Tyrone.  These  objects 
are  now  all  in  my  own  collection,  and,  as  will  be  seen  in  Fig.  496,  there 
can  be  no  doubt  of  an  efficient  form  of  double  buckle  being  presented  by 
the  pin  and  rings.  Whether  it  was  used  for  fastening  a  cloak  or  tunic, 
as  suggested  by  Mr.  0' Gorman,  or  for  some  other  purpose,  I  need  not 
stay  to  examine.  I  think,  however,  that  the  discovery  of  the  pin  and 
perforated  rings  in  juxtaposition  throws  some  light  upon  the  character  of 
other  rings  with  cross  perforations,  of  which  many  have  been  found  in 
Ireland.  One  of  these  is  shown  in  Fig.  497,  borrowed  from  Wilde.*  I 
have  one  of  precisely  the  same  character,  2f  inches  in  diameter,  with  a 
cross  perforation  through  the  two  projecting  mouth-pieces,  slightly  oval, 
and  about  the  size  to  receive  a  common  pencil.  VaHancey  f  has  figured 
others,  in  one  of  which  there  is  a  cross-pin  with  a 
small  ring  at  each  end,  somewhat  like  a  horse's  bit.J 
Others,  with  numerous  small  loops  round  the  circum- 
ference, and  with  central  bosses  secured  by  pins,  or 
occasionally  with  cross  arms  within  them,  appear  to  be 
of  later  date  and  to  have  had  bands  of  chain-mail 
attached.  In  some  of  the  plain  rings,  however,  there 
is  a  portion  of  a  strap  of  bronze  left,  which  Sir  W. 
Wilde  regards  as  having  served  to  connect  the  ring- 
chains,  of  which  he  thinks  that  coats  of  mail  were 
made.  Under  any  circumstances,  these  perforated 
rings  seem  to  come  under  the  category  of  fastenings  or  clasps,  to  which 
the  looped  tubes  already  described  may  also  be  referred. 

A  perforated  ring  was  in  the  hoard  found  at  Llangwyllog,  §  Anglesea, 
already  mentioned. 

Large  rings,  such  as  those  described  in  the  last  chapter,  may 
also  have  served  as  connections  for  bands  or  straps. 

There  is,  indeed,  numismatic  evidence  that  among  the  Ancient 
Britons,  shortly  after  the  time  of  Julius  Caesar,  rings  were  em- 
ployed as  connecting  links  between  the  different  straps  forming 
the  harness  of  war-horses.  On  a  gold  coin  of  Verica,||  engraved 
on  the  title-page  of  Akerman's  "  Ancient  Coins  of  Cities  and 
Princes,"  and  now  in  my  own  collection,  there  is  on  the  reverse 
a  warrior  on  horseback.  The  engraving  of  the  die  is  exquisitely 
minute,  and  the  warrior's  saddle  is  shown  to  be  secured  by  four 
girths,  and  by  straps  running  from  it  round  the  chest  and  the 
hind-quarters  to  keep  it  in  position.  On  the  shoulder  and  the 
haunches  there  are  rings  to  which  these  straps  are  joined,  and 
from  each  of  these  rings  another  strap  runs  down  to  pass  below 

*  "Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,"  p.  579,  fig.  494.  t  Vol.  iv.  pi.  xiv. 

I  See  Wilde's  "Catal.,"  p.  576  et  seqq. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74  ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  xii.  p.  97. 
||  Type  of  Evans,  "  Anc.  Brit.  Coins,"  pi.  ii.  9. 


400 


CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xix. 


the  body  of  the  horse.  Each  ring,  therefore,  has  three  straps 
secured  to  it,  one  running  forwards,  another  backwards,  and  the 
third  downwards.  Kings  with  three  loops  for  straps  attached 
occur  among  Etruscan  Antiquities.* 

Of  brooches  proper,  with  a  pin  attached  by  a  spring  or  hinge, 
and  secured  by  a   hasp   or  catch,  none   are,   I   think,   known  in 

Britain  which  can  Avith 
safety  be  assigned  to  an 
earlier  period  than  the  Late 
Celtic. 


Fig.  498.— Co-vrtam 


That  shown  in  Fig.  498 
was  found  by  Canon  Green- 
well,  F.E.S.,  in  a  barrow  in 
the  parish  of  Cowlam,f  Yorkshire,  together  with  an  armlet  (Fig.  486) 
and  a  necklace  of  glass  beads,  on  the  body  of  an  aged  woman.  The 
pin  was  of  iron,  which  had  replaced  the  original  of  bronze.  I  have  a 
somewhat  similar  brooch  from  Eedmore,  near  St.  Austell,  Cornwall,  as 
well  as  one  of  longer  form  and  with  a  larger  disc,  which  was  found 
in  a  barrow  near  Bridlington,  together  with  two  remarkable  buckles 
formed  of  penannular  rings.  These  were  described  by  the  late  Mr. 
Thomas  Wright  J  (who  has  figured  them)  as  un- 
doubtedly Eoman,  but  their  character  is  decidedly 
"Late  Celtic."  Other  brooches  of  the  same  character 
as  the  figure,  found  in  the  Thames,  London,  and  near 
Avebury,  Wilts,  are  in  the  British  Museum. 

Another  article  in  use  for  fastening  or  attach- 
ing parts  of  the  dress  is  the  button,  which 
claims  a  high  antiquity.  I  have  elsewhere  § 
described  some  made  of  stone  and  jet,  in  which 
a  Y-shaped  perforation  in  the  body  of  the  button 
afforded  the  means  of  fastening  it  to  the  dress. 
In  the  bronze  buttons  a  legitimate  loop  or  shank 
is  found,  which  is  cast  in  one  piece  with  the 
button  itself. 

In  Fig.  499  are  shown  three  full-size  views  of  one  of 
two  bronze  buttons  from  the  Eeach  Fen  hoard  in  my  own 
collection.  There  is  a  sharpness  and  smoothness  about 
their  faces  which  suggests  their  having  been  finished 
by  some  process  of  turning  or  rotary  grinding.  The  centre  and  raised  bands, 
though  similar,  are  not  identical  in  the  two,  or  it  might  have  been  thought 
that  they  were  cast  in  a  m  etal  mould .  Four  oth  ers  w  ere  found  at  the  same  time . 
A  button  of  almost  the  same  size  and  pattern  was  found  with  a  razor 
and  other  objects  at  Llangwyllog,  Anglesea.||  One  of  the  same  character, 

*  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  110.  t  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  209. 

J  "  Essays  on  Arch.  Sub.,"  vol.  i.  p.  25.  §  "  Anc.  Stone  Imp.,"  p.  407. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  74 ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  xii.  p.  97. 


BUTTONS   WITH   CONCENTRIC   FLUTINGS.  401 

but  of  larger  size  (If  inch),  was  found  with  a  gouge,  socketed  celts, 
&c.,  at  Kensington.*  It  has  a  central  boss  and  two  raised  ridges.  Both 
these  buttons  are  now  in  the  British  Museum. 

In  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Durham,  was  a  small  button,  £  inch  in 
diameter,  with  one  loop  at  the  back;  and  another  larger  (1J  inch),  with 
five  loops  at  the  back,  one  in  the  centre,  and  the  four  others  at  equal 
distances  around  it  forming  four  sides  of  an  octagon.  This  larger  button 
has  a  series  of  concentric  rings  or  grooves  on  the  face ;  the  small  one 
has  a  central  pointed  boss  with  one  groove  around  it. 

Some  curious  buttons,  like  half  barrels  in  shape,  were  found  with  a 
hoard  of  bronze  objects  at  St.  Grenouph  (Indre  et  Loire),  and  are 
preserved  in  the  Museum  at  Tours.  Numerous  buttons  of  circular  form 
have  been  found  in  other  parts  of  France. 

Buttons  of  various  sizes  and  shapes  have  also  been  found  in  abund- 
ance in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings. 

A  clay  mould,  apparently  for  buttons  of  this  kind,  is  in  the  Museo 
Civico  at  Modena. 

In  the  cemetery  at  Hallstatt  immense  numbers  of  small  button-like 
objects  have  been  found,  some  of  the  warriors'  coats  having  been  completely 


Fig.  500.—  Edinburgh. 


studded  with  them.  Some  of  these  are  not  more  than  f  inch  in  diameter, 
nearly  hemispherical,  and  with  a  small  bar  cast  across  them  inside. 

A  peculiar  annular  button  with  two  loops  at  the  back,  found  with 
bronze  swords  (see  Fig.  353)  and  a  flat-headed  pin  (Fig.  464)  at  Edin- 
burgh,! is  represented  in  Fig.  500.  The  original  is  now  in  the  Anti- 
quarian Museum  at  Edinburgh,  It  has  been  thought  to  be  the  mounting 
of  a  belt. 

Bronze  discs  of  larger  size  than  any  ordinary  buttons  or  clasps  are 
occasionally  found.  One  such,  3^-  inches  in  diameter,  with  three  con- 
centric circles  engraved  on  one  of  its  faces,  was  discovered  at  Castell  y 
Bere,  Merionethshire.^:  Another  was  found  at  Wolsonbury  Hill,§  Sussex. 
A  third,  about  5  inches  in  diameter,  with  raised  concentric  rings  upon  it, 
is  in  the  Scarborough  Museum.  One  found  at  Inis  Kaitra,  ||  Lough  Derg, 
between  Clare  and  Galway,  has  been  figured.  It  has  a  hollow  conical  pro- 
jection  like  the  umbo  of  a  shield,  surrounded  by  five  concentric  raised 
rings,  the  interval  between  the  second  and  third  being  about  double  that 
between  any  other  pair.  The  inner  side  has  grooves  corresponding  with  the 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  232. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  N.S.,  vol.  L,  p.  322,  whence  this  cut  is  borrowed. 
J  Arch.  Journ,,  vol.  xi.  p.  179.  §  Ibid.  ||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  200. 

D  D 


402 


CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xix. 


external  ridges,  and  across  the  inside  of  the  hollow  umbo  is  a  small  bar 
of  metal.  The  diameter  of  this  ornament  is  4%  inches.  It  is  now  in  the 
British  Museum.  In  many  respects  such  discs  resemble  the  so-called 
tutuli  of  the  Scandinavian  antiquaries,  though  the  long-pointed  form  has 
not  been  found  in  the  British  Islands. 

An  irregularly  rounded  flat  plate  of  bronze,  about  5  inches  by  5£, 
and  \  \  inch  thick,  apparently  hammered  out,  was  found  with  leaf -shaped 


Fig.  501.— Heathery  Burn  Cave. 

spear-heads  and  a  sword  at  "Worth,*  Devon.  I  have  a  round  flat  plate, 
about  6^  inches  in  diameter  and  -\-  inch  thick,  found  near  Clough,  Co. 
Antrim,  which  bears  deep  hammer  marks  in  sets  of  parallel  grooves  on 
both  faces.  Perhaps  such  plates  were  destined  to  be  still  further  drawn 
out  into  sheets  for  the  manufacture  of  caldrons  or  other  vessels. 

In  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  already  so  often  mentioned,  were  about 
ten  convex  plates,  with  a  raised  rim  round  their  edge,  a  small  hole  in  the 
middle,  and  four  loops  cast  on  at  the  back.  One  of  these  is  shown  in 
Fig.  501.f  With  them  were  found  about 
the  same  number  of  broad  hoops,  of  which 
an  example  is  given  in  Fig.  502.  These 
are  dexterously  cast  in  one  piece,  with  a 
groove  inside  corresponding  with  the  raised 
central  ridge  on  the  outside.  Their  dia- 
meter is  only  about  4f  inches,  while  that  of 
the  discs  is  about  5  &  inches.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  see  any  connection  between  the  two 

Fig.  602.— Heathery  Burn  Cave,   j        f  orms,  though  from  the  correspondence  in 
their  numbers  a  connection  at  first  sight 

seems  probable.  The  hoops  have  been  spoken  of  as  armlets,  but  I  can 
hardly  regard  them  as  such.  Most  of  the  specimens  are  in  the  collection 
of  Canon  Green  well,  F.R.S.,  though  thanks  to  his  kindness  I  have  an 
example  of  each ;  and  two  hoops  and  a  disc  are  in  the  British  Museum. 
Canon  Greenwell  has  two  other  discs  of  a  somewhat  similar  character, 
found  with  spear-heads  and  socketed  celts  near  Newark.  They  are  5J 
inches  in  diameter,  with  a  raised  rib  round  the  margin  and  a  central 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  120. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  236.     This  and  the  following  cut  are  kindly  lent 
me  by  the  Council  of  the  Society. 


SLIDES    FOR   STRAPS?  403 

hole.  The  surface,  instead  of  being  regularly  convex,  rises  more  rapidly 
towards  the  centre,  so  as  to  make  a  kind  of  cone  with  hollowed  sides. 
There  are  no  loops  nor  any  means  of  attachment  on  the  interior.  It  may 
be  that  a  shank  was  riveted  through  the  central  hole,  as  was  the  case 
with  some  analogous  conical  objects  from  Hallstatt. 

Without  expressing  any  definite  opinion  on  the  subject,  I  may  call 
attention  to  a  certain  analogy  that  exists  between  these  hoops  and  discs,  and 
the  hoops  and  axle  ends  of  Gaulish  chariots  of  the  Early  Iron  Age.  The 
naves  of  the* wheels  of  the  chariot  found  in  the  tomb  of  la  Gorge  Meillet  * 
(Marne)  had  bronze  hoops  on  either  side  of  the  naves,  and  an  ornamented 
plate  at  each  end  of  the  axle.  The  hoops,  however,  are  made  of  plates 
riveted  together,  and  were  not  cast  in  one  piece,  and  the  centre  of  the 
plates  is  open,  though  crossed  by  an  iron  pin. 

Fragments  of  what  may  have  been  discs  of  the  same  kind,  with  a  hole 
in  the  centre  and  four  small  bosses  at  intervals  around  it,  were  found 
in  the  hoard  at  Stanhope,  f  Durham,  which  comprised  spear-heads,  celts, 
&c.,  much  like  those  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave. 

Similar  large  discs  with  concentric  circles  upon  them,  and  having  loops 
at  the  back,  have  been  found  in  various  parts 
of  France,  Switzerland,  and  Italy .J 

Another  and  smaller  disc  with  a  central  hole, 
having  a  short  collar  round  it,  is  shown  in 
Fig.  503.  This  is  only  the  rough  casting  ;  and 
at  one  time  I  thought  it  was  merely  a  waste 
piece  or  jet  from  the  foundry,  as  it  was  dis- 
covered with  moulds,  celts,  &c.,  in  the  Isle  of 
Harty  hoard.  Another  disc  of  the  same  kind 
was,  however,  found  with  the  hoard  of  bronze 
at  Yattendon,  §  Berks,  which  shows  so  much 
finish  all  over  that  it  would  seem  to  have  been 
adapted  for  some  special  purpose,  and  not  to 
have  been  merely  a  piece  of  waste  metal.  Another  disc  of  the  same  kind 
was  found  in  the  hoard  at  Haynes  Hill,  ||  Kent,  and  was  regarded  as  part 
of  an  utensil.  Mr.  Franks  informs  me  that  an  example  with  a  rather 
longer  tube  has  been  found  in  Brittany.  In  the  Yattendon  hoard  were 
also  some  fragments  of  thin  bronze  plate  very  highly  planished  on  one 
face,  and  a  hollowed  conical  piece  of  bronze,  not  unlike  an  extinguisher; 
but  the  purpose  for  which  either  of  these  was  intended  is  a  mystery. 

Returning  to  bronze  objects  which  appear  to  be  in  some  manner  con- 
nected with  straps,  I  may  cite  some  loops  or  slides  of  which  an  example 
is  given  in  Fig.  504.  The  original  is  not  in  this  case  English,  having 
formed  part  of  the  hoard  found  at  Dreuil,  near  Amiens.  But  a  specimen 
of  the  same  size  and  shape,  though  rather  more  convex  on  the  faces,  is 
in  Lord  Braybrooke's  collection  at  Audley  End,  and  was,  I  believe,  found 
with  other  bronze  objects,  including  a  hollow  ring,  in  Essex.  At  first 
sight  such  objects  might  appear  to  be  intended  for  mouth-pieces  of  scab- 
bards, but  on  trial  I  find  that  the  opening  is  not  wide  enough  to  allow  of 
the  passage  of  a  sword  blade,  much  less  to  admit  of  a  thickness  of 

*  Fourdrignier,  "Double  Sep.  Gaul.,"  1878,  pi.  v.  and  vi. 
t  Arch.  Jttiana,  vol.  i.  p.  13,  pi.  ii.  14. 
\  See  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  156. 
§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  vii.  p.  485. 

||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxx.  p.  282,  fig.  3 ;  Anthrop.  Inst.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  230. 
D  D  2 


404 


CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xrx. 


leather  or  wood  in  addition.  They  seem  more  probably  to  be  slides,  such 
as  might  have  served  for  receiving  the  two  ends  of  a  leather  belt. 

In  the  Dreuil  hoard  was  also  a  flat  kind  of  ferrule,  about  2£  inches 
wide  and  closed  at  the  end,  which  may  have  served  as  a  sort  of  tag  or 
end  to  a  broad  strap.  There  were  also  socketed  celts  and  knives. 

In  the  same  hoard  was  a  loop  fluted  on  one  face,  like  Fig.  505,  but 
with  four  divisions  instead  of  three,  and  2£  inches  wide.  The  loops 
shown  in  Figs.  505  and  506  formed  part  of  a  large  hoard  found  near 
Abergele,*  Denbighshire,  and  described  in  the  Archaologia,  whence  my 
cuts  are  copied.  There  were  present  in  the  hoard  forty-two  loops  or  slides 
of  this  kind,  though  of  various  widths,  as  well  as  eighteen  buttons,  a  reel- 
shaped  object  like  Fig.  377,  and  numerous  rings,  some  of  them  almost  like 


^H 
J 


Fig.  506.— Abergele.        1 


Fig.  507. — Abergele. 


buckles  in  shape.  There  were  also  several  double  rings  fitting  the  one 
within  the  other,  the  inner  about  1 J  inch  in  diameter  and  the  outer  about 
2£  inches.  They  are  cast  hollow,  and  on  the  inner  ring  is  a  loop  which 
fits  into  a  hole  in  the  outer  ring.  In  the  same  hoard  was  the  remarkable 
object  shown  half-size  in  Fig.  507.  It  consists  of  three  pairs  of  irregular 
oval  plates  with  loops,  through  which  is  passed  a  bar  of  bronze.  Mr. 
Franks,  who  has  described  the  hoard,  says  that  "  the  loops  show  marks 
of  wear,  and  the  whole  was  probably  a  jingling  ornament  to  be  attached 
to  horse-harness.  Objects  of  the  same  nature  have  been  found  with 
bridle-bits,  and  are  engraved  in  Madsen,  Afbildninger,]  and  in  "Worsaae's 
Nordiske  Oldsager,  Fig.  266." 

These  examples,  however,  do  not  present  such  close  analogies  with  the 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  556,  pi.  xxxvii.  figs.  8  and  11. 
t  PL  ad.  16 ;  Samlede  Fund,  pi.  xvi.  12. 


OBJECTS    OF    UNCERTAIN    USE.  405 

Welsh  specimen  as  do  some  interlinked  rings  with  flat  pendants  found  at 
Ploneour,*  Brittany,  with  looped  palstaves  and  a  flat  quadrangular  knife. 
Some  other  analogous  objects  are  mentioned  by  M.  Chantre,f  who  has  also 
described  several  ststrum-like  instruments,  to  which  M.  de  Mortillet  J  is 
inclined  to  assign  an  Eastern  origin. 

Eeverting  to  the  Abergele  hoard,  I  may  add  that  Mr.  Franks  regards 
it  as  belonging  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  and  conjectures  that 
most  of  the  objects  which  it  comprised  formed  part  of  the  trappings  of  a 
horse. 

Bronze  bridle-bits,  such  as  have  been  found  in  various  parts  of  the 
Continent,  §  have  very  rarely  been  found  in  Britain,  though  occasionally 
discovered  in  Ireland.  In  the  British  Isles  they  appear  for  the  most  part, 
if  not  in  all  cases,  to  belong  to  the  Late  Celtic  Period. 

Another  form  of  bronze  objects  of  uncertain  use  is  shown  in  Fig.  508, 
which  is  taken  from  a  French  and  not  an  English  original.  This  formed 
part  of  the  Dreuil  hoard  ;  and  as  in  so  many  respects  the  articles  com- 
prised in  this  deposit  present  analogies  with  those  found  in  England,  it 
appeared  worth  while  to  call  attention  to  this  particular  object.  It  is  a 
kind  of  semicircular  flap,  with  a  hole 
running  through  the  beaded  cylinder  at 
top.  What  was  its  purpose  I  cannot 
say,  though  I  have  a  thin  gold  plate  of 
the  same  form,  but  decorated  with  ring 
ornaments,  that  was  found  at  Hallstatt. 
It  may  be  merely  a  pendant. 

Among  other  miscellaneous  objects 
of  bronze  may  be  mentioned  an  article 
of  twisted  bronze  already  cited  at  p.  51. 
It  has  a  flat  tang  for  insertion  into  a 
handle,  in  which  are  four  rivet-holes. 
Beyond  the  handle  project  two  twisted  K 

horns,  which  seem  to  have  nearly  or 
quite  met,  so  as  to  form  a  somewhat  heart-shaped  ring.  In  the  centre 
opposite  the  tang  is  a  long  slot  with  a  chain  of  three  circular  rings 
attached.  The  whole  covers  a  space  of  about  6£  inches  in  length  by  4£ 
inches  in  breadth.  With  Sir  E.  Colt  Hoare,  "  I  leave  to  my  learned 
brother  antiquaries  to  ascertain"  what  was  the  ancient  use  of  this 
singular  article,  which  was  found  in  a  barrow  at  Wilsford,||  with  a  stone 
hammer,  a  flanged  bronze  celt,  and  other  objects  in  company  with  an  un- 
burnt  body. 

Portions  of  three  sickle-like  objects,  with  a  kind  of  square  tang, 
through  which  is  a  large  hole,  were  found  with  a  palstave  and  a  flat  celt 
and  many  other  bronze  antiquities,  near  Battlefield,  Salop.  ^[  These 
measure  about  7  inches  by  7J  inches,  and  their  purpose  is  as  much 
veiled  in  mystery  as  that  of  the  Wilsford  relic,  with  which  they  present 
a  slight  analogy. 

The  flat  annular  and  horseshoe-shaped  plates — the  one  13  inches  in 
diameter,  and  the  other  2  feet  1  inch  long — found  with  an  oblong  cup- 

*  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  vi.  p.  137.  t  "Age  du  Bronze,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  188. 

J  Bev.  Anthrop.,  1875,  tome  iv.  p.  650. 

§  See  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  Ire  ptie.,  p.  152. 

||  "Anc.  Wilts,"  vol.  i.  p.  209.  II  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  252. 


406  CLASPS,    BUTTONS,    BUCKLES,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XIX. 

shaped  boss  on  the  hill  of  Benibhrese,*  in  Lochaber,  appear  to  me  to  be 
probably  Late  Celtic. 

Some  of  the  curious  spoon-like  articles  f  of  bronze  occasionally  found 
in  all  parts  of  the  United  Kingdom  may  also  belong  to  the  Late  Celtic 
Period,  and  most  of  them  probably  to  quite  the  close  of  that  period,  if 
not  to  a  later  date. 

The  remarkable  bronze  rod,  about  18  inches  long,  with  small  figures 
of  birds  and  pendent  rings  upon  it,  found  near  Ballymoney,  j  County 
Antrim,  is  probably  of  later  date  than  the  Bronze  Period :  as  are  also 
the  curious  figures  of  boars  and  other  animals  found  near  Hounslow.§ 

In  concluding  this  chapter,  it  may  be  observed  that  although 
I  have  attempted  to  give  in  it  some  notice  of  various  forms  of 
bronze  relics  of  many  of  which  the  use  is  uncertain,  yet  that  I  do 
not  pretend  that  the  list  here  given  comprises  all  such  objects  as 
have  been  discovered  in  Britain.  In  several  hoards  of  bronze 
there  have  been  found  portions  of  thin  plates  and  fragments  of 
objects  the  purpose  of  which  is  unknown  ;  and  I  have  thought  it 
best  not  to  encumber  my  pages  with  notices  of  mere  fragments 
about  which  even  less  is  known  than  about  the  mysterious  articles 
to  the  description  of  which,  perhaps,  too  much  space  has  already 
been  allotted. 

*  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  46. 

t  See  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  pp.  35  and  52  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  v.  p.  Ill; 
C.  R.  Smith's  "  Catal.  London  Ant.,"  p.  82  ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  viii.  p.  208  ;  vol.  x. 
p.  57 ;  "  Hor.  Fer.,"  p.  184. 

I  Trans.  Kilkenny  Arch.  Soc.,  vol.  iii.  p.  65.     Annalerfor  Oldk.,  1836,  p.  175. 

§  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  90. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

VESSELS,    CALDRONS,    ETC. 

OF  the  various  forms  of  fictile  vessels  which  were  in  use  at  the 
same  period  as  daggers  and  other  weapons  formed  of  bronze,  it  is 
not  the  place  here  to  speak.  Much  has  already  been  written  on 
the  subject,  not  only  in  various  memoirs  which  have  appeared  in 
the  proceedings  of  our  different  Antiquarian  and  Archaeological 
Societies,  but  also  in  several  standard  archaeological  works.  For 
the  pottery  found  in  the  tumuli  of  this  country  I  would  more 
particularly  refer  to  Canon  Greenwell's  "  British  Barrows,"  and  to 
Dr.  Thurnam's  "Paper  on  the  Barrows  of  Wiltshire,"  published 
in  the  Archceologia*  Both  these  authors  agree  that  none  of  the 
pottery  from  the  barrows  has  been  made  upon  the  wheel.  The 
greater  part  of  the  fictile  ware  with  which  we  are  acquainted  was  used 
for  sepulchral  purposes,  and  there  appears  good  reason  for  supposing 
that  much  of  it  was  manufactured  expressly  for  the  dead,  and  not 
for  the  living.  Still  there  are  a  certain  number  of  examples  known  of 
what  has  been  termed  culinary  pottery,  some  of  which  have  been 
found  in  barrows,  and  some  in  the  remains  of  dwellings  of  the 
Bronze  Period.  This  pottery,  unlike  the  sepulchral,  is  devoid  of 
ornament,  and  is  well  burnt,  "  plain,  strong,  and  useful,"  but  it 
is  also  made  by  hand.  Some  of  the  pottery  from  the  Swiss  Lake- 
dwellings  is,  however,  ornamented  in  various  ways,  but  the 
potter's  wheel  does  not  seem  to  have  been  in  use.  t  And  yet,  in 
more  than  one  instance,  there  have  been  found  in  barrows  in  the 
South  of  England  weapons  of  bronze,  accompanied  by  vessels  of 
amber  and 'of  shale,  which  have  all  the  appearance  of  having  been 
turned  in  a  lathe.  Of  some  of  these  vessels  I  have  given  figures 
in  my  "  Ancient  Stone  Implements,"  +  and  also  stated  the  parti- 
culars of  the  discoveries.  I  have  also  mentioned  the  discovery  of 
a  gold  cup  in  a  barrow  at  Rillaton,  Cornwall,  which  was  accom- 

*  Vol.  xliii.          f  Lubbock,  "Preh.  Times,"  4th  ed.,  p.  223.  J  P.  399  et 


408  VESSELS,    CALDRONS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XX. 

panied  by  what  appears  to  have  been  a  bronze  dagger.*  As  this 
vessel  is  of  metal,  I  have  here  reproduced  the  cut  as  Fig.  509. 
It  seems  to  me  probable  that  the  same  kind  of  vessel  which  was 
made  in  the  nobler  metal  may  also  prove  to  have  been  made  in 
bronze,  although  as  yet  no  examples  have  been  discovered.  The 


Bottom  of  cup. 
Fig.  509.— Golden  Cup;   Eillaton.    Height,  3i  inches. 

hanging  cups  of  bronze  of  which  many  have  been  found  in  Scan- 
dinavia, and  at  least  one  example  in  Switzerland,  are  at  present 
not  known  to  have  been  discovered  within  the  British  Isles. 

It  was  probably  not  until  nearly  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period 
that  the  art  was  discovered  of  hammering  out  bronze  into  suffi- 
ciently large  and  thin  laminae  for  the  manufacture  of  cups  and 

*  Erroneously  called  a  celt  by  Mr.  Kirwan.     See  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiv.  p.  189 
whence  this  cut  is  borrowed. 


CALDRONS    FOUND    IN    SCOTLAND.  409 

vessels.  It  would  be  impossible  to  cast  the  metal  so  thin  as  even 
that  employed  for  shields,  and  before  ingots  or  flat  plates,  like 
those  already  mentioned  at  page  402,  could  be  thus  drawn  out,  an 
acquaintance  with  some  process  of  annealing  must  have  been 
gained.  It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  the  same  process  which  has 
the  effect  of  hardening  steel  has  exactly  the  contrary  effect  on 
copper,  and  to  some  extent  on  bronze.  Steel  when  heated  to 
redness  and  then  dipped  in  cold  water  becomes  so  intensely  hard, 
that  tools  treated  in  this  manner  have  to  be  somewhat  tempered, 
or  softened  by  heat,  before  they  can  safely  be  used;  while  to 
soften  copper  the  usual  method  adopted  is  to  make  it  red-hot 
and  dip  it  in  cold  water.  In  whatever  way  the  metal  was  drawn 
out,  some  of  the  large  vessels  of  the  transitional  period  between 
Bronze  and  Iron,  such  as  those  from  Hallstatt,  are  wonderful 
examples  of  skill  in  working  bronze. 

Almost  the  only  bronze  vessel  found  in  a  barrow  in  England 
had  an  iron  handle  to  it,  showing  that  it  could  not  belong  to  the 
Bronze  Age  properly  so  called.  It  is,  indeed,  somewhat  doubtful 
whether  it  accompanied  an  interment.  In  the  centre  of  a  low 
mound  near  Wetton,*  Staffordshire,  about  a  foot  below  the  surface, 
Mr.  Bateman  found  "two  very  curious  vessels,"  one  about  four 
inches  high,  and  of  rather  globular  form,  carved  in  sandstone,  and  at 
the  distance  of  a  foot  from  it  the  other,  "a  bronze  pan  or  kettle  four 
inches  high  and  six  inches  in  diameter,  writh  a  slender  iron  bow 
like  a  bucket  handle.  It  has  been  first  cast  and  then  hammered, 
and  is  very  slightly  marked  with  horizontal  ridges."  It  was 
inverted,  and  above  it  were  traces  of  decayed  wood.  There  appear 
to  have  been  some  remains  of  burnt  bones  near  the  surface  of  the 
ground.  This  bronze  vessel  is  somewhat  like  the  lower  part  of 
an  ordinary  flower-pot  in  form.  In  Mr.  Bateman' s  Catalogue  t 
there  is  a  note  to  the  effect  that  this  object  is  "  probably  Romano- 
British,"  but  I  have  thought  it  best  to  cite  it. 

Several  caldrons  made  of  thin  bronze  plates  riveted  together 
have  been  found  in  Scotland,  in  some  instances  in  company  with 
bronze  weapons. 

In  Duddingston  Loch,|  near  Edinburgh,  together  with  swords  and 
spear-heads,  were  some  bronze  rings  and  staples  similar  in  character  to 
those  attached  to  the  rim  of  a  large  bronze  caldron  found  at  Farney,§ 
Ulster,  but  there  is  no  record  of  any  caldrons.  Others  of  these  rings  are  in 

*  "Ten  Years'  Dig.,"  p.  173.  t  P.  21. 

J  Wilson,  "Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  pp.  350,  408. 

§  Shirley's  "Dominion  of  Farney ;"  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  96. 


410  VESSELS,    CALDRONS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XX. 

the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh,  two  of  which  were  found  with  the 
large  caldron  here  figured  (Fig.  510)  in  the  Moss  of  Kincardine,*  near 
Stirling,  in  the  year  1768.  In  this  case  no  weapons  appear  to  have  been 
found.  At  the  side  is  a  broad  band  embossed  with  circles.  This  vessel 
is  of  large  size,  being  16  inches  high,  16  inches  across  the  mouth,  and 
25  inches  in  extreme  diameter. 

An  imperfect  caldron,  with  handles  of  the  same  kind,  was  found  at 
Kilkerran,  Ayrshire,  with  socketed  celts  and  fragments  of  swords. 

Others  of  these  caldrons,  but  little  differing  in  form  from  those  found 
with  bronze  relics,  have  been  accompanied  by  various  tools  formed  of 
iron,  as,  for  instance,  those  found  at  Cockburnspath,  Berwickshire  ;  and 
in  Carliiiwark  Loch,  Kelton,  Kirkcudbright.  There  can,  indeed,  be  little 


Fig.  510.— Kincardine  Moss. 

doubt  that  such  vessels,  if  belonging  to  the  Bronze  Age,  are  to  be 
assigned  to  the  close  rather  than  to  the  beginning  or  even  middle  of  that 
period. 

Several  such  caldrons  have  been  discovered  in  Ireland. 

That  shown  in  Fig.  511  is  about  21  inches  in  diameter  and  12  inches 
high.f  It  is  composed  of  a  number  of  pieces  of  thin  bronze,  each  averaging 
3£  inches  broad  and  decreasing  in  length  near  the  bottom.  "  These 
plates  bear  the  marks  of  hammering,  and  are  joined  at  the  seams  with 
rivets  averaging  about  half  an  inch  asunder.  These  rivets  have  sharp 
conical  heads  externally,  and  some  were  evidently  ornamental,  as  they 
exist  in  places  where  there  are  no  joinings,  and  in  the  circular  bottom 
portion  they  are  large  and  plain.  The  upper  margin  of  this  vessel  is 
2£  inches  broad,"  and  corrugated.  "  Its  outside  edge  next  the  solid  hoop 
has  a  double  line  of  perforations  in  it."  It  was  in  a  vessel  of  this  kind 
tha,t  part  of  the  great  Dowris  hoard  of  bronze  antiquities  was  deposited. 

The  metal  is  said  by  Mr.  McAdam,  in  a  paper  on  "  Brazen  Caldrons," 

*  Wilson,  op.  cit.,  vol.  i.  p.  409.  I  am  indebted  to  Messrs.  Macmillan  &  Co.  for  the 
use  of  this  cut. 

t  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  K.  I.  A.,"  p.  529,  fig.  407.  This  cut  has  teen  lent  me  by  the 
Council  of  the  Academy. 


CALDRONS    FOUND    IN    ENGLAND.  411 

published  in  the  Ulster  Journal  of  Archceology •*  to  be  thinner  than  any- 
thing of  the  kind  used  in  our  modern  cooking  vessels,  while  the  surfaces 
are  almost  as  even  and  level  as  that  of  modern  sheet  brass. 

Another  caldron  from  Dowris,  more  nearly  hemispherical,  also  with 
two  rings,  is  in  the  collection  of  the  Earl  of  Eosse.  A  specimen  from 
Farney  has  been  already  mentioned.  It  resembles  Fig.  511. 

In  the  collection  of  Mr.  T.  W.  U.  Eobinson,  F.S.A.,  is  a  remarkably 
fine  and  perfect  caldron,  closely  resembling  Fig.  511,  found  in  the  parish 
of  Bally  scullion,  Co.  Antrim,  in  June,  1880.  The  following  are  its 
dimensions : — 

Diameter  at  top         .         .         .         18  inches. 
Width  of  rim    ....  2£     ,, 

Extreme  diameter      .         .         .         24       ,, 

Height 16       „ 

Outside  diameter  of  rings  .  4J     ,, 

The  rings  are  about  £  inch  wide  and  of  this  section 


Fig.  511.— Ireland. 

Although  no  such  vessels  have  been  found  in  barrows  in  Eng- 
land, they  are  not  entirely  unknown  in  this  country. 

A  very  fine  caldron  of  this  character,  about  21  inches  in  extreme 
diameter  and  about  16  inches  in  height,  was  dredged  up  in  the  Thames 
near  Battersea,  and  is  now  in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  formed  of  two 
tiers  of  plates  above  the  concave  bottom,  and  has  had  two  rings  at  the 
mouth,  one  of  which,  about  5  inches  in  diameter,  remains.  The  rings  are 
of  this  section  |-j-,  which  combines  great  strength  with  economy  of  metal. 

The  expanding  rim  of  the  mouth  is  supported  on  four  small  brackets, 
pierced  so  as  to  leave  a  saltire  ornament  in  each.  The  rivet-heads  are 
about  J  inch  in  diameter.  From  these  brackets  two  strips  of  thin  brass 
run  down  about  3  inches,  each  ornamented  with  a  fern-leaf  pattern. 

The  bottom  of  another  caldron,  from  Walthamstow,  of  about  the  same 
size,  is  also  in  the  same  collection.  The  metal  is  remarkably  thin. 

The  two  rings  of  such  a  caldron,  5£  inches,  of  this  section  {-* ,  found 
near  Ipswich,  are  in  the  British  Museum.     The  semi-cylindrical  beaded 
brackets    through  which  they   pass    and   a    part   of   the  rim  are   still 
attached.     Another  ring  was  found  with  a  hoard  at  Meldreth,  Cambs. 
*  Vol.  v.  p.  82. 


412 


VESSELS,    CALDRONS,    ETC. 


[CHAP.  xx. 


In  some  vessels  very  large  sheets  of  bronze  have  been  used.  That  shown 
in  Fig.  512,  also  from  Wilde,*  is  18^  inches  deep,  but  was  formed  of  three 
plates  only,  one  for  the  circular  bottom  and  two  for  the  remainder  of  the 
vessel.  At  the  neck  is  a  stout  bronze  ring,  over  which  the  plates  are 
turned.  "  It  originally  stood  on  six  feet,  each  forming  an  inverted  cup." 
It  has  suffered  much  from  wear,  and  has  been  carefully  patched  in 
several  places.  The  metal  is  very  tough  and  of  a  rich  golden  colour.  It 
is  composed  of — 

Copper 88-71 

Tin 9-46 

Lead 1-66 

Iron  Trace 


99-83 

Among  three  bronze  vessels  from  the  Dowris  find  now  in  the  British 
Museum  is  one  of  the  form  of  Fig.  512,  16  inches  high. 

The  form  is  almost  identical  with  some 
of  the  bronze  urns  from  the  cemetery  at 
Hallstatt,  of  which  several  appear  to  be  of 
Etruscan  fabric. 

Another  vessel  of  the  same  character 
was  found  in  a  tumulus  in  Brittany,  f  and 
contained  burnt  bones. 

In  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.S.,  is  a  vessel  of  hammered  bronze 
of  the  same  character  as  the  figure,  but  of 
rather  broader  proportions,  being  nearly 
17£  inches  high  and  about  16  inches  in 
diameter;  at  the  shoulder  the  neck  con- 
tracts to  13  inches.  It  has  the  usual  two 
massive  handles ;  and  at  the  bottom  is  a 
flat  ring  with  arms  across  it  like  a  four- 
spoked  wheel,  rather  more  than  9  inches 
in  diameter.  The  arms  are  ribbed  longi- 
tudinally, and  the  ring  has  concentric 
ribs  upon  it,  except  at  the  junction  with  the  arms,  where  there  are 
cross-ribs.  There  are  five  rivets  in  it,  one  in  the  centre  and  four  in  the 
ring  opposite  each  end  of  the  arms.  This  vessel,  which  has  been  patched 
in  more  than  one  place,  was  found  with  numerous  other  bronze  objects 
in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  already  so  often  mentioned. 

A  remarkably  fine  specimen  of  a  vase  of  this  character,  found  in 
Capecastle  Bog,  near  Annoy,  Co.  Antrim,  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr.  T. 
W.  U.  Eobinson,  F.S.A.  It  formerly  belonged  to  Mr.  William  Gray,  of 
Belfast,  who  kindly  allowed  me  to  engrave  it  as  Fig.  513.  Its  dimensions 
are  as  follows — 

Height 17£  inches. 

Diameter  of  mouth .  .  .  13  ,, 
Diameter  at  shoulder  .  .  15^  ,, 
Diameter  at  bottom  .  .  7J  ,, 

The  weight  is  5  Ibs.  9  ozs.     The  plates  of  which  it  is  formed  are  care- 
fully riveted  together,  and  are  of  large  size.     Some  holes  which  have 
*  Catal.  Mus.  E.  I.  A.,  p.  531,  fig.  409.  f  Rev.  Arch.,  N.S.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  326. 


Fig.  512.— Ireland. 


CALDRONS  FOUND  IN  IRELAND. 


413 


apparently  been  worn  by  use  have  been  carefully  patched.  All  the  upper 
part  of  the  vessel  above  the  shoulder  is  decorated  by  small  raised  bosses  pro- 
duced by  means  of  a  punch  applied  on  the  inside  of  the  vessel,  and  below 
the  shoulder  is  a  series  of  triangles  embossed  in  a  similar  manner  forming 
a  kind  of  vandyke  collar  round  the  vessel.  This  character  of  ornamentation 
is  very  characteristic  of  the  Bronze  Period,  and  though  not  uncommon  on 
urns  formed  of  burnt  clay,  has  not,  I  think,  been  before  observed  on  those 
made  of  bronze. 

The  bottom  of  the  vessel  is  se- 
cured by  a  ring  and  cross  piece  of 
bronze  forming  a  kind  of  four- 
spoked  wheel,  as  shown  in  the 
lower  figure.  The  rings  for 
suspension  are  solid,  and  hang 
towards  the  inside  of  the  vessel. 

As  will  be  seen,  there  is  much 
analogy  between  this  Irish  vessel 
and  that  from  the  Heathery  Burn 
Cave  last  described.  The  latter, 
however,  is  without  ornament. 


Fig.  513.— Capecastle  Bog. 


These  conical  vessels  are 
probably  earlier  in  date  than 
the  spheroidal  caldrons. 

Whether  either  were  actu- 
ally manufactured  in  Britain 
and  Ireland  is  an  interesting 
question.  There  can,  I  think, 
be  little  doubt  that  the  conical 
form  originated  among  the 
Etruscans,  whose  commerce 
certainly  extended  to  the 
northern  side  of  the  Alps.* 
One  of  the  upright  vases 

found  at  Hallstattf  has  animal  figures  upon  it  almost  undoubtedly 
of  Etruscan  work,  though  showing  some  signs  of  Eastern  influence 
in  their  style,  and  bronze  helmets  bearing  Etruscan  inscriptions  have 
been  found  in  Styria.  On  the  other  hand,  M.  Alexandre  Bertrand 
and  some  other  antiquaries  are  inclined  to  believe  in  a  more  direct 
commerce  with  the  East  along  the  valley  of  the  Danube  or  Dnieper. 
The  finding  of  vessels  of  the  same  form  in  Brittany,  England,  and 
Ireland  seems  to  point  to  a  more  western  course  of  trade,  always 
assuming  that  these  objects  were  imported.  That  some  of  them 

*  A  paper  on  "  Etruscan  Commerce  with  the  North,"  by  Dr.  Hermann  Genthe,  will 
be  found  in  the  Archiv.  fur  Antfirop.,  vol.  vi.  p.  237. 
t  Von  Sacken,  "  Das  Grabf.  v.  Hallst.,"  Taf.  xxi.  1. 


414  VESSELS,    CALDRONS,    ETC.  [CHAP.  XX. 

may  have  come  from  abroad  appears  in  the  highest  degree  probable. 
Not  impossibly  the  ces  importation  of  Caesar  may  refer  to  a  con- 
tinuance of  such  a  trade.  But  whether  there  were  no  bronze- 
smiths  in  the  British  Isles  capable  of  imitating  such  products  of 
skill  is  doubtful.  The  bronze  shields  which  are  of  essentially 
indigenous  character  exhibit  an  amount  of  dexterity  in  producing 
thin  plates  of  bronze  quite  sufficient  for  the  manufacture  of  such 
vessels.  Moreover,  the  handles  of  these  British  and  Irish  vessels 
are  formed  by  rings,  while  those  of  the  vessels  from  southern 
countries  are  loops  like  the  handles  of  pails  or  buckets.  The 
spheroidal  caldrons  are  also  of  a  form  and  character  which  appears 
to  be  unknown  on  the  Continent,  and  are  therefore,  in  all  proba- 
bility, of  indigenous  manufacture. 

The  careful  manner  in  which  some  of  the  vessels  are  mended 
affords  an  argument  that  such  utensils  were  rare  and  valuable  ; 
but  it  also  shows  that  the  native  workmen  understood  how  to 
make  thin  plates — unless  these  were  portions  of  other  vessels — 
and  at  all  events  how  to  rivet  plates  together. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

METAL,    MOULDS,    AND    THE    METHOD    OF    MANUFACTURE. 

HAVING  now  passed  in  review  the  various  forms  of  weapons,  tools, 
ornaments,  and  vessels  belonging  to  the  Bronze  Period  of  this  country, 
it  will  be  well  to  consider  the  nature  of  the  metal  of  which  they  are 
formed,  and  the  various  processes  by  which  they  were  produced 
and  finished  ready  for  use.  Some  of  these  processes,  as  for  instance 
the  hammering  out  of  the  cutting-edges  of  tools  and  weapons,  and 
the  production  of  ornamental  designs  by  means  of  the  hammer 
and  punch,  have  already  been  mentioned,  and  need  be  but  cursorily 
noticed.  The  main  process,  indeed,  of  which  this  chapter  will 
treat  is  that  of  casting. 

Bronze,  as  already  stated,  is  an  alloy  of  copper  and  tin,  and 
therefore  distinct  from  brass,  which  is  an  alloy  of  copper  and  zinc. 
Many  varieties  of  bronze — or,  as  it  is  now  more  commonly  called, 
gun-metal — are  in  use  at  the  present  day  ;  and  one  remarkable 
feature  in  bronze  is  that  the  admixture  with  copper  of  the  much 
softer  metal  tin,  in  varying  proportions,  produces  an  alloy  in  most 
if  not  all  cases  harder  than  the  original  copper  ;  and  when  the  tin 
is  much  in  excess,  as  in  the  metal  used  for  the  specula  of  tele- 
scopes, so  much  harder  that,  d  priori,  such  a  result  of  the  mixture 
of  two  soft  metals  would  have  been  thought  impossible.  The 
following  table  compiled  from  a  paper  in  Design  and  Work, 
reprinted  in  Martineau  and  Smith's  Hardware  Trade  Journal* 
gives  some  of  the  alloys  now  in  most  common  use  and  the 
purposes  to  which  they  are  applied  : — 

Per  cent. 
Tin.        Copper.      of  Copper. 

11        108     -    Qfl-7fi  \  ^   common  Distal  for  cannon  and  machine 
(      brasses,  used  also  for  bronze  statues. 

•J1  99        9Q.  \ 

95    ~    89.79  (  Grun-metal  proper,  used  for  cannon. 

,,  00,4,4  I  Used  for  bearings  of  machinery,  frequently 

14  j      called  gun-metal.       . 

*  April  30,  1879. 


416       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND    METHOD   OF   MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.   XXI. 

Per  cent. 
Tin.       Copper.       of  Copper. 

11  72  =  86-75  Bather  harder. 

11  60  =  84-50  Harder,  not  malleable. 

11  44  =  80-00  Used  for  cymbals  and  Chinese  gongs. 

11  48  =  81-35  Very  hard,  used  for  culinary  vessels. 

\l        K^JBe". 

11         24    =    68-57     Yellowish,  very  hard,  sonorous. 

o«  ««  f  Very  white,  sometimes  used  for  specula  with 
3b  (      some  other  slight  admixture. 

Lord  Rosse,  however,  in  casting  specula,  preferred  using  copper 
and  tin  in  their  atomic  proportions,  or  6  8 '21  per  cent,  of  copper 
and  3179  of  tin. 

The  addition  of  tin,  while  increasing  the  hardness  of  copper, 
also  renders  it  more  fusible.  In  small  proportions  it  but  little 
affects  the  colour  of  the  copper,*  and  it  is  difficult  to  recognise  its 
presence  from  the  physical  characters  of  the  copper,  except  from 
that  of  increased  hardness.  What  appear,  therefore,  to  be  copper 
instruments  may,  and  indeed  often  do,  contain  an  appreciable 
admixture  of  tin,  which,  however,  can  only  be  recognised  by 
analysis. 

Besides  the  superiority  of  one  alloy  over  another,  it  appears 
probable  that  the  method  of  treatment  of  the  metal  may  some- 
what affect  its  properties.  M.  Trescaf  found  that  a  gun-metal 
cast  by  Messieurs  Laveissiere,  consisting  of — 

Copper 89-47 

Tin 978 

Zinc 0-66 

Lead 0'09 

was  superior  in  all  respects  to  either  the  common  gun-metal  A  or 
the  phosphor-bronze  B  cast  at  Bourges,  the  constituents  of  which 
were  as  follows  : — 

A  B 

Copper       .          .          .          89'87         90-60 
Tin   .  .  9-45  8'82 

Zinc  ....  0-31  0-27 

Lead.  0'37  0'31 


100-          100- 

*  Percy's  "Metallurgy,"  vol.  i.  p.  474  (ed.  1861). 

t  Comptes  Rendua  de  V Ac.  des  So.,  vol.  Ixxvi.  (1873),  p.  1232. 


LEAD  ABSENT  IN  EARLY  BRONZE.  417 

The  results  of  both  ancient  and  modern  experience  as  to  the 
proportions  in  which  copper  and  tin  should  be  mixed,  in  order  to 
produce  a  tough  and  hard  though  not  brittle  metal,  appear  to  be 
nearly  the  same  ;  and  nine  parts  of  copper  to  one  part  of  tin  may 
be  regarded  as  the  constituents  of  the  most  serviceable  bronze  or 
gun-metal. 

In  the  following  table  I  have  given  the  results  of  some  of 
the  more  recent  analyses  of  bronze  antiquities  found  in  the  United 
Kingdom,  and  have  omitted  the  early  analyses  of  Dr.  Pearson* 
in  1796  as  being  only  approximative.  I  have  arranged  them  so  far 
as  practicable  in  accordance  with  the  different  forms  of  the  objects 
analyzed  ;  and  one  feature  which  is  thus  brought  out  tends  strongly 
to  confirm  the  conclusion  which  has  been  arrived  at  from  other 
premises,  that  certain  forms  of  bronze  weapons  and  other  instru- 
ments and  utensils  are  of  later  date  than  others. 

It  will  be  seen,  for  instance,  that  in  the  flat  and  flanged  celts, 
the  palstaves,  and  even  spear-heads,  lead,  if  present  at  all,  exists  in 
but  very  minute  quantity  ;  whereas  in  the  socketed  celts  and  swords, 
which  are  probably  later  forms,  and  especially  in  those  from 
Ireland,  this  metal  occurs  in  several  cases  in  considerable  pro- 
portions. 

This  prevalence  of  lead  is  very  remarkable  in  some  of  the  small 
socketed  celts  found  in  very  large  numbers  in  Brittany,  which 
from  their  diminutive  size  have  been  regarded  as  "votive"  rather 
than  as  destined  for  actual  use.  In  some  of  these  Professor 
Pelligotf  found  as  much  as  28*50  and  even  32*50  per  cent,  of 
lead,  with  only  li  per  cent,  or  a  small  trace  of  tin.  In  others, 
with  a  large  per-centage  of  tin,  there  was  from  8  to  16  per  cent, 
of  lead.  Some  of  the  bronze  ornaments  of  the  Early  Iron  Period 
also  contain  a  considerable  proportion  of  this  metal,  which,  in  the 
early  Roman  as  +  and  its  parts,  is  found  to  the  extent  of  from 
20  to  30  per  cent.  Although  some  such  proportion  as  9  to  1 
appears  to  have  been  aimed  at,  there  is  great  variation  in  the 
proportions  of  the  principal  ingredients  even  in  cutting  tools  of 
the  same  general  character,  the  tin  being  sometimes  upwards  of 
1 8  per  cent,  and  sometimes  less  than  5  per  cent,  of  the  whole. 

This  variation  was  no  doubt  partly  due  to  occasional  scarcity  of 
tin  ;  but,  as  Dr.  W.  K.  Sullivan  has  pointed  outj  there  are  two 

*  Phil.  Trans.,  1796,  vol.  Ixxxvi.  p.  395. 
t  Chantre,  "  L'Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  62. 
I  J.  A.  Phillips,  Q.  J.  Chem.  Soc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  266. 
$  O'Curry's  "  Mann,  and  Oust,  of  the  Anc.  Irish,"  vol.  i.  p.  ccccxx. 
E  E 


418       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

other  causes  for  it  :  first,  the  separation  of  the  constituent  metals 
in  the  fused  mass,  and  the  accumulation  of  the  tin  in  the  lower 
portion  of  the  castings ;  and,  second,  the  throwing  off  of  the  tin 
by  oxidation  when  the  alloys  were  re-melted.  M.  Dusaussoy* 
found  that  an  alloy  containing  90*4  per  cent,  of  copper  and  9 '6 
per  cent,  of  tin  lost  so  much  of  the  latter  metal  by  six  fusions  that 
it  ultimately  consisted  of  95  per  cent,  of  copper  and  only  5  per 
cent,  of  tin. 

With  regard  to  the  early  sources  of  the  copper  and  tin  used  in 
this  country,  and  in  general  through  Western  Europe,  it  will  not 
be  in  my  power  to  add  much  to  what  has  already  been  published 
on  this  subject. 

It  seems  probable  that  gold,  which  commonly  occurs  native  and 
brilliant,  was  the  first  metal  that  attracted  the  attention  of  man- 
kind. The  next  metal  to  be  discovered  would,  in  all  probability, 
be  copper,  which  also  occurs  native,  and  has  many  points  of 
resemblance  with  gold. 

The  use  of  this  metal,  as  I  have  observed  in  the  Introductory 
Chapter,  no  doubt  originated  in  some  part  of  the  world  where,  as 
on  the  shore  of  Lake  Superior,  it  occurs  in  a  pure  metallic  state. , 
When  once  it  was  discovered  that  copper  was  fusible  by  heat, 
the  production  of  the  metal  from  some  of  the  more  metallic-looking 
ores,  such  as  copper  pyrites,  would  follow ;  and  in  due  time,  either 
from  association  with  the  metal,  or  from  their  colour  and  weight, 
some  of  the  other  ores,  both  sulphuretted  and  non-sulphuretted, 
would  become  known,  f 

When  once  the  production  of  copper  in  this  manner  was 
effected,  it  is  probable  that  the  ores  of  other  metals,  such  as 
tin,  would  also  become  known,  and  that  tin  ores  would  either 

*  O'Cuny,  op.  cit.,  p.  ccccxviii. 

t  For  an  interesting  essay  on  the  sources  of  bronze,  see  Prof.  Sullivan  in  the  Intro- 
duction to  O'Curry's  "  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  Ancient  Irish,"  p.  ccccvii.  See 
also  H.  H.  Howorth,  F.S.A.,  on  the  "  Archaeology  of  Bronze,"  Trans.  Ethnol.  Soc., 
vol.  vi.  p.  72 ;  Sabatier,  "  Production  de  1'or,  de  1' argent,  et  du  cuivre,"  &c.,  1850  ;  Von 
Bibra,  "Die  Bronzen  und  Kupferlegirungen,"  1869  ;  De  Fellenberg,  "  Bull,  de  la  Soc. 
des  Sc.  nat.  de  Berne,"  1860 ;  Wocel,  "  Chemische  Analysen  anb.  Bronze  legirungen," 
in  Sitzf-Ber.  phil.  hist.  Classe.  Acad.  der  Wiss.  Wien.  Bd.  xvi.  169  ;  "  Kelternes,  Ger- 
manernes  og  Slavernes  Bronzer,"  in  Antiq.  Tidskrift.,  1852 — 54,  p.  206  ;  Morlot,  "  Les 
Metaux  dans  1'Age  du  Bronze,"  Mem.  Soc.  Ant.  du  Nord,  1866—71,  p.  23  ;  Wibel,  "  Die 
Cultur  der  Bronze-Zeit  Nord  und  Mittel  Europas,"  1865 ;  Von  Cohausen's  Review  of 
Wibel,  Archh:furAnth.,vol.  i.  p.  320,  vol.  iii.  p.  37;  Lubbock,  "  Prehistoric  Times,"  p.  59 
et  seqq. ;  Zaborowski-Moindron,  "  L'Anciennete  de  1'Homme,"  1874 ;  Dr.  C.  F.  Wiberg, 
"Einfluss  der  Etrusker  und  Griechen  auf  die  Bronze  Cultur,"  Arch,  fur  Anth.,  vol.  iv. 
p.  11 ;  Troyon,  "Monuments  de  1'Ant.  dans  1'Europe  barbare,"  1868  ;  De  Rougemont, 
"L'Age  du  Bronze,"  1866;  A.  Bertrand,  "Aruh.  Celtique  et  Gauloise,"  1876;  G.  De 
Mortillet,  "  Origine  du  Bronze,"  Revite  d'Anthrop.,  vol.  iv.  p.  650 ;  Wilson,  "  Preh. 
Annals  of  Scotland,"  and  "  Prehistoric  Man." 


SOURCES   OF   COPPER   AND    TIN.  419 

be  treated  conjointly  with  the  ores  of  copper,  as  suggested  by 
Dr.  Wibel,  so  as  at  once  to  produce  bronze  ;  or  added  to  crude 
copper,  as  suggested  by  Professor  Sullivan  ;  or  again,  be  smelted 
by  themselves  so  as  to  produce  metallic  tin.  At  what  date  it 
was  generally  known  that  "  brass  is  molten  out  of  the  stone  "*  is, 
however,  a  question  difficult  to  answer. 

Native  copper  and  many  of  its  ores  occur  in  Hungary,  Norway, 
Sweden,  Saxony,  and  Cornwall  ;  but  copper  pyrites  is  far  more 
generally  distributed,  and  is  found  in  most  countries  of  the  world. 
So  far,  therefore,  as  the  existence  of  this  metal  is  concerned,  there 
was  no  necessity  for  the  Britons  in  Csesar's  time  to  make  use 
of  imported  bronze,  especially  as  tin  was  found  in  abundance  in 
Cornwall,  and  long  before  Caesar's  time  was  exported  in  considerable 
quantities  to  the  Continent.  And  yet  his  account  may  to  some 
extent  be  true,  as  a  socketed  celt  of  what  is  almost  undoubtedly 
Breton  manufacture  has  been  found  near  Weymouth,t  and  several 
instruments  of  recognised  French  types  have  been  found  in  our 
southern  counties.  Bronze  vessels  also  may  have  been  imported. 

Copper  and  its  ores  are  abundant  in  Ireland,  especially 
copper  pyrites  and  gray  copper. 

Although  tin  was  formerly  found  in  abundance  in  some  parts  of 
Spain,  and  also  in  less  quantity  in  Brittany,+  there  can  be  but 
little  doubt  that  the  Cassiterides,  with  which  either  directly  or 
indirectly  the  Phoenicians  traded  for  tin,§  are  rightly  identified  with 
Britain.  But,  with  due  deference  to  Professor  Nilsson  and  other 
antiquaries,  I  must  confess  that  the  traces  of  Phoenician  influence 
in  this  country  are  to  my  mind  at  present  imperceptible ;  and  it  may 
well  be  that  their  system  of  commerce  or  barter  was  such  as 
intentionally  left  the  barbarian  tribes  with  whom  they  traded  in 
much  the  same  stage  of  civilisation  as  that  in  which  they  found 
them,  always  assuming  that  they  dealt  directly  with  Britain  and 
not  through  the  intervention  of  Gaulish  merchants. 

The  argument,  however,  that  the  Phoenician  bronze  would  have 
been  lead-bronze,  because  the  Phoenicians  derived  their  civilisa- 
tion and  arts  from  Egypt,  and  had  continual  intercourse  with 
that  country,  where  lead-bronze  was  early  known,  appears  to  me 
wanting  in  cogency.  For  though  the  Egyptians  may  have  used 

*  Job,  chap,  xxviii.  v.  2. 
t  P.  115. 

£  Comptes  Rendus,  1866,  vol.  Ixii.  pp.  223,  346. 

§  The  doubts  raised  by  the  late  Sir  G-.  C.  Lewis  on  this  point  have  been  dealt  with  by 
Sir  John  Lubbock,  "  Preh.  Times,"  p.  63  et  seqq. 

E  E  2 


420       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND    METHOD   OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

lead-bronzes  for  statues  and  ornaments,  the  Egyptian  dagger* 
analyzed  by  Vauquelin  gave  copper  85,  tin  14,  and  iron  1  per 
cent.,  and  showed  no  trace  of  lead.  Of  one  point  we  may  be  fairly 
certain,  that  the  discovery  of  bronze  did  not  originate  in  the  British 
Isles,  but  that  the  knowledge  of  that  useful  metal  was  commu- 
nicated from  abroad,  and  probably  from  the  neighbouring  country, 
France.  When  and  in  what  manner  that  and  the  other  countries 
of  Western  and  Central  Europe  derived  their  knowledge  of  bronze 
it  is  not  my  intention  here  to  discuss.  I  will  only  say  that  the 
tendency  of  the  evidence  at  present  gathered  is  to  place  the  original 
source  of  bronze,  like  that  of  the  Aryan  family,  in  an  Asiatic  rather 
than  an  European  centre. 

The  presence  in  greater  or  less  proportions  of  other  metals  than 
copper  and  tin  in  bronze  antiquities  may  eventually  lead  to  the 
recognition  of  the  sources  from  which  in  each  country  the 
principal  supplies  of  metal  were  obtained.  Professor  Sullivan, 
in  the  book  already  cited,  arrives  at  the  following  among  other 
conclusions  from  the  chemical  facts  at  his  command  : — 

1.  The  northern  nations  in  ancient  times  used  only  true  bronzes 
— those  formed  of  copper  and  tin — of  greater  or  lesser  purity 
according  to  the  kind  of  ores  used. 

2.  Many  of  these  bronzes  contain  small  quantities  of  lead,  zinc, 
nickel,  cobalt,  iron,  and  silver,  derived  from  the  copper  from  which 
the  bronze  was  made. 

3.  Though  some  bronzes  may  have  been  produced  directly  by 
melting  a  mixture  of  copper  and  tin  ores,   the  usual  mode  of 
making  them  was  by  treating  fused  crude  copper  with  tin-stone,  t 
In  later  times    bronze   was    made    by    mixing    the    two    metals 
together. 

4.  The   copper    of   the    ancient  bronzes    seems  to  have  been 
smelted  in  many  different  localities. 

Some  analyses  of  bronze  antiquities  found  in  other  countries  are 
given  in  the  works  indicated  below,*  in  addition  to  those  men- 
tioned on  page  418, 

*  Von  Bibra,  op.  cit.,  p.  94. 

t  Dr.  Percy,  F.K.S.,  and  other  practical  metallurgists  have  shown  that  this  view  is 
untenable.  See  Lubbock,  "  Prehist.  Times,"  p.  621. 

I  Annales  for  Oldk.,  1852,  p.  249  ;  Jahrbiich.  des  Ver.  v.  Alt.-freund  im  Eheinl.,  vol. 
lix.  p.  21 ;  Chantre,  "Age  du  Br.,"  lere  ptie.,  p.  62  ;  Perrin,  "  Et.  preh.  sur  la  Savoie," 
1870,  p.  19;  Layard,  "Nineveh  and  Babylon,"  p.  670. 


ANALYSES   OF    BRONZE   ANTIQUITIES. 


421 


j 

.9 

H 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

i 

i 

| 

H 

! 

Flat  celt,  Ireland    .     . 

86-98 

12-57 

0-37 

99-92 

B 

Flanged  celt      .     .     . 

90-18 

9-82 

Trace. 

100-00 

A 

Palstave  (Mean)     . 

89-33 

9-20 

0-34 

0-24 

99-11 

A 

Fife    .     .     . 

81-19 

18-31 

0-75 

100-25 

D 

Socketed    celt,    York- 

shire      

81-15 

12-30 

2-63 

Tr. 

0-13 

0-07 

•96-28 

A 

Socketed  celt,  Ireland. 

90-69 

7-44 

1-28 

Tr. 

Tr^ 

JTr. 

Tr. 

99-41 

A 

„        „       (Mean)  . 

83-65 

11-02 

3-20 

0-58 

"~F 

54 

98-79 

A 

„      Wicklow 

88-30 

10-92 

0-10 

Tr. 

Tr. 

99-32 

B 

„        „      Cavan    . 

95-64 

4-56 

0-25 

0-02 

100-47 

B 

„        ,,      Dowris  . 

85-23 

13-11 

1-14 

0-15 

99-63 

F 

Dagger,  Newton,  near 

Cambridge     .     .     . 
Dagger,  Ireland  (?)     . 

85-33 
99-72 

14-20 

0-29 

Tr. 

0-27 

0-04 

•28 

flOO-13 
100- 

A 
A 

»            »> 

87-97 

11-35 

0-28 

Tr. 

Tr. 

99-60 

B 

S  word,England  (Mean  ), 
Chertsey,  Br.      .     . 

89-69 

9-59 

0'33 

Tr. 

99-61 

A 

Sword,  Scotland    .     . 

88-51 

9-30 

2-30 

100-11 

D 

„        Ireland  (Mean) 

91-79 

8-17 

Tr. 

Tr. 

99-96 

A 

>             » 

87-07 

8-52 

3-37 

Tr. 

99-96 

B 

„       (Mean) 

85-63 

10-03 

2-93 

0-44 

99-03 

A 

»            )>             • 

88-63 

8-54 

2-83 

100-00 

E 

,» 

83-50 

5-15 

8-35 

3'00 

100-00 

E 

Spear-head,  Ireland    . 

86-28 

12-74 

0-07 

0-31 

0-09 

99-49 

B 

84-64 

14-01 

Tr. 

Tr. 

98-65 

B 

',',                 "      •     • 

88-42 

11-29 

Tr. 

0-29 

0-29 

100-29 

G 

Halberd,  Ireland     .     . 

95-85 

2-78 

0-12 

1-32 

100-07 

B 

Shield,  Coveney  Fen  . 

87-50 

11-62 

99-12 

C 

„ 

87-55 

11-72 

0-40 

99-67 

0 

Trumpet,  Dowris    .     . 

79-34 

10-87 

9-11 

99-32 

F 

Caldron,  Scotland  .     . 

92-89 

5-15 

1-78 

99-82 

D 

>» 

84-08 

7-19 

8-53 

0-03 

99-83 

D 

„        Ireland    .     . 

88-71 

9-46 

1-66 

99-83 

B 

A,  Mr.  J.  A.  Phillips,  see  Quart.  Journ.  Chem.  Soc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  276. 

B,  J.  W.  Mallet,  Trans.  JR.  I.  Ac.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  324. 

C,  T.  H.  Henry,  F.R.S.,  Pub.  Camb.  Ant.  Soc.,  No.  xiv.  p.  13. 

D,  Dr.  George  Wilson,  Wilson's  "  Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  374. 

E,  Prof.  Davy,  „  „  „  „ 

F,  Dr.  Donovan,  „  „  „  „ 

G,  De  Fellenberg. 

*  In  this  case  oxygen  to  the  extent  of  3-83  was  present.  The  bronze  had  become  so 
friable  as  to  be  easily  pulverised  in  a  mortar.  Mr.  J.  Arthur  Phillips  writes  about  it 
as  follows  : — "  When  a  freshly-broken  fragment  of  it  is  examined  under  a  low  magnify- 
ing power,  it  is  seen  to  consist  of  a  metallic  net-work  enclosing  distinct  and  perfectly 
formed  crystals  of  cuprite,  surrounded  by  a  greyish  white  substance  which  is  chiefly 
binoxide  of  tin.  In  this  alloy  the  nickel,  silver,  and  iron  are  evidently  accidental  im- 
purities, but  the  lead  is  no  doubt  an  intentional  ingredient."  The  specific  gravity 


after  pulverization  is  about  7'26  only. 


intentional  ingredient."    The  specific  gravity 
t  Specific  gravity  8-59. 


422       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD    OF    MANUFACTURE.       [dlAP.  XXI. 

I  have  here  given  most  of  the  trustworthy  analyses  already 
published,  and  have  only  added  two  new  analyses  kindly  made  for 
me  by  Mr.  J.  A.  Phillips,  F.G.S.,  of  a  socketed  celt  from  York- 
shire and  of  a  small  dagger  from  Newton,  near  Cambridge. 

Those  who  wish  for  detailed  information  as  to  the  composition 
of  the  bronze  antiquities  found  in  other  countries  are  referred  to 
De  Fellenberg's  essays  and  to  Yon  Bibra's  comprehensive  work.1"" 

The  copper  which  was  used  by  the  bronze-founders  of  old  times 
appears  to  have  been  smelted  from  the  ore  and  run  into  a  shallow 
concave  mould  open  at  top,  in  which  the  metal  assumed  the  form 
of  a  circular  cake,  convex  below  and  flat  above  ;  but  before 
becoming  sufficiently  cold  to  be  quite  set  into  tough  metal,  these 
cakes  seem  as  a  rule  to  have  been  disturbed  and  broken  up  into 
numerous  pieces,  better  adapted  for  re-melting  than  the  whole 
cakes  would  have  been.  This  method  of  breaking  up  the  solid 
cakes  while  hot  saved  also  an  infinity  of  labour ;  as  to  cut  such 
masses  into  small  pieces  when  cold  would,  even  with  modern 
appliances,  be  a  difficult  task ;  and  with  only  bronze  and  stone 
tools  at  command  would  have  been  nearly  impossible.  Many  of 
the  cakes  are,  however,  interspersed  with  cavities  formed  in  the 
metal,  and  in  some  cases  there  seems  reason  to  think  that  this  may 
have  been  produced  intentionally,  so  as  to  render  the  breaking  of 
the  cakes  even  when  cold  more  readily  practicable. 

Many  of  the  blocks  of  metal  cast  in  rough  moulds,  and  known 
by  Italian  antiquaries  as  ces  signatum,  have  a  similar  broken 
appearance  at  the  ends.  Professor  Chiericif  has  suggested  that 
the  moulds  in  which  they  were  cast  were  of  considerable  length, 
and  that  from  time  to  time  clay  and  sand  were  thrown  in  so  as  to 
break  the  continuity  of  the  metal,  which  indeed  was  poured  in  at 
intervals,  after  the  insertion  of  the  sand  or  clay,t  to  form  the  break 
in  the  mould. 

Some  pieces  of  metal  which  have  been  regarded  as  ingots,  and 
which  not  improbably  are  really  such,  have  the  form  of  a  double- 
ended  axe  with  a  very  small  shaft  hole.  They  have  been  discovered 
with  several  of  the  bronze-founders'  hoards  in  France.  Dr. 
Y.  Gross,  of  Neuveville,  has  a  fine  example  of  this  kind  found  at 
Locras,  in  the  Lac  de  Bienne.J  It  is  about  16i  inches  long  and 
4f  inches  wide  at  the  ends,  the  hole  through  the  centre  being 

*  "Die  Bronzen  und  Kupferlegirungen,"  8vo.     Erlangen,  1869. 
t  Bull,  di  Paletnol.  Ital.,  1879,  p.  159. 

J  Chantre,  "Age  duBr.,"  lereptie.,  p.  36;  "Alb.,"  pi.  xxviii. ;  "  Materiaux,"  vpl.  xi. 
pi.  L  1.  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  2nd  Ser.,  vol.  viii.  p.  250. 


LUMPS   OF    ROUGH    METAL.  423 

about  i  inch  in  diameter,  and  the  weight  of  the  ingot,  which  is  of 
pure  copper,  is  about  6|  Ibs. 

Rough  lumps  of  metal  have  frequently  been  found  with  deposits  of 
bronze  implements  in  Britain,  these  latter  being  sometimes  in  a 
worn-out  or  broken  condition,  and  apparently  brought  together  as 
old  metal  for  re-casting.  In  other  deposits  the  instruments  seem 
new  and  ready  for  use,  or  again  they  are  in  an  unfinished  condition. 
All  the  circumstances  of  these  discoveries,  however,  go  to  prove  that 
they  are  in  fact  the  stock-in-trade  of  the  ancient  bronze-founders. 
The  jets  or  waste  pieces  from  the  castings,  of  which  I  shall  subse- 
quently have  to  speak,  are  often  found  mixed  with  the  rude  lumps. 
These  lumps  have  usually  the  appearance  of  pure  copper,  and  in 
many  cases  have  proved  to  be  so  on  analysis. 

Some  copper  cakes  appear,  however,  to  belong  to  Roman  times. 
They  differ  in  shape  from  those  already  described,  in  being  of  nearly 
even  thickness,  but  with  the  edge  inclined  as  if  they  had  been  cast 
in  a  small  frying-pan.  They  are  from  10  to  13  inches  in  diameter 
and  about  2  inches  thick  ;  and  on  more  than  one  found  in 
Anglesea*  there  are  inscriptions  in  Roman  characters.  They 
weigh  from  30  to  50  Ibs. 

Turning  now  to  the  instances  of  lumps  of  rough  metal  being  found 
with  bronze  weapons  and  tools,  the  following  may  be  cited,  though  other 
instances  are  given  in  the  tables  at  page  462  : — 

Lanant,  Cornwall,!  heavy  lumps  of  fine  copper,  found  with  broken, 
socketed  celts,  &c. 

Kenidjack  Cliff,  Corn  wall,  J  with  palstaves  and  socketed  celts. 

St.  Hilary,  Corn  wall,  §  lumps  weighing  14  or  15  Ibs.  each,  said  to  have 
been  found  with  spear-heads. 

Near  Worthing,  Sussex,  several  lumps  of  metal,  with  palstaves  and 
socketed  celts. 

Beachey  Head,  \\  three  lumps  of  raw  copper,  apparently  very  pure, 
with  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  &c. 

Wick  Park,  Stogursey,  Somerset,^  with  palstaves,  socketed  celts, 
broken  swords,  spears,  &c. 

Kingston  Hill,  Surrey,**  with  socketed  celts,  fragments  of  swords,  and 
spear-head. 

Beddington,  Surrey, f  f  with  mould,  socketed  celts,  gouge,  spear-heads,  &c. 

Wickham  Park,  Croydon,  Surrey,  H  with  palstave,  gouge,  hammer,  &o. 

Danesbury,  near  Welwyn,  Herts,  §§  lumps  of  metal  with  damaged 
socketed  celts. 

*  Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,'vol.  ii.  p.  59,  vol.  viii.  p.  210 ;  Pennant's  "  Tour,"  vol.  i.  p.  63  ; 
Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxix.  194 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  286. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  118.  %  Journ.  Roy.  Inst.  Cornw.,  No.  xxi. 

§  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  120  (Leland).  \\  Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  363. 

IT  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  Ser.,  vol.  v.  p.  427.     **  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  288. 
tt  Surrey  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  vi.  JJ  Anderson's  "Croydon,"  p.  10. 

§§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  248. 


424   METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE.   [CHAP.  XXI. 

Cumberlow,  Herts,*  with  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  fragments  of 
swords,  &c. 

Westwick  Eow,  Hemel  Hempsted,f  several  lumps,  with  socketed  celts. 

Eomford,  Essex,  J  lumps  of  metal  in  waste  pieces  and  imperfect  cast- 
ings, untrimmed  socketed  celts,  &c. 

Fifield,  Essex,  §  upwards  of  50  Ibs.  of  metal,  with  socketed  celts. 

High  Eoding,  Essex,  ||  with  socketed  celts,  &c. 

Kensington,^  with  socketed  celt,  gouge,  &c. 

Sittingbourne,  Kent,**  with  socketed  celts,  gouges,  &c. 

Meldreth,  Cambs,tt  with  socketed  celts,  chisel,  ring  of  caldron,  &c. 

Carlton  Eode,  Norfolk,^  lumps  of  metal,  with  socketed  celts,  gouges, 
&c. 

HelsdonHall,  Norwich,  §§  pieces  of  copper,  socketed  celts,  &c. 

Earsley  Common,  York,  ||  ||  several  lumps  of  metal,  with  nearly  a  hundred 
socketed  celts. 

Marti esham,  Suffolk,^  a  large  quantity  of  metal,  including  some  lumps 
weighing  5  or  6  Ibs.,  with  socketed  celts,  gouge,  &c. 

West  Halton,  Lincolnshire,***  with  socketed  celts  and  broken  sword. 

Eoseberry  Topping,  Yorkshire,  fff  with  socketed  celts,  gouges,  hammer, 
&c. 

In  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,  Durham,  and  in  the  Guilsfield  find,  there 
was  in  each  case  at  least  one  lump  of  metal. 

Besides  the  cakes  of  copper,  bars  of  that  metal  appear  to  have  been 
hammered  into  an  oblong  form,  and  then  cut  into  lengths  of  from  4  to 
5  inches,  weighing  each  about  J  lb.,  and  in  that  state  to  have  served  as 
the  raw  material  for  the  bronze-founders.  Thirteen  of  these  short  bars 
were  found  at  Therfield,  near  Eoyston,  Herts,  J^  and  Dr.  Percy  found 
on  analysis  that  they  contained  about  98^  per  cent,  of  copper  with  a 
small  alloy  of  tin  or  antimony,  probably  the  latter.  Some  fifteen  or 
"sixteen  "pieces  of  long  triangular  brass"  are  described  as  having 
been  found  with  about  the  same  number  of  celts  at  Hinton,  near  Christ- 
church,  Hants.§§§  These  bars  "  seemed  to  be  pieces  of  the  metal  out 
of  which  the  celts  were  cast." 

In  Scotland  some  " lumps  of  brass"  were  found  with  the  swords, 
spears,  &c.,  in  Duddingston  Loch.||||||  Probably  other  lumps  of  metal  have 
been  found  in  that  country,  but  they  seem  to  be  scarcer  in  Scotland  and 
Ireland  than  in  England. 

Although,  as  already  observed,  Spain  may  have  been  the 
principal  Western  source  of  tin  in  early  times,  and  possibly 
MalaccaHHH  in  the  East,  the  trade  with  Britain  for  that  metal  must 

*  Journ.  Anthrop.  Inst.,  vol.  vi.  p.  195.        t  Penes  me,  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.  p.  24. 

%  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.  p.  302.  $  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  116. 

j|  In  the  British  Museum.  f  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  Ser.,  vol.  iii.  p.  232. 

**  Smith's  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.  i.  p.  101.         ft  In  the  British  Museum. 

%%  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ii.  p.  80.  §§  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  116. 

(HI  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  114. 

1T1T  Penes  Capt.  Brooke,  TJfford  Hall,  Woodbridge. 

***  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  69.  ftt  Arch.  Mliana,  vol.  ii.  p.  213. 

\\ I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  i.  p.  306 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  86. 

§§§  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  115. 

IHIII  Wilson,  "  P.  A.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  348  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  132. 

HHU  Crawfurd,  Trans.  Eth.  Soc.,  vol.  iii.  p.  360. 


DISCOVERIES    OF   TIN   IN   HOARDS   OF    BRONZE.  425 

have  commenced  at  a  very  remote  epoch.  We  might  expect, 
therefore,  that  fragments  of  tin  would  be  frequently  found  in  the 
old  bronze-founders'  hoards.  But  though  lumps  of  copper  have 
so  often  been  discovered  in  them,  tin  is  at  present  conspicuous  by 
its  absence.  The  only  instance  to  which  I  am  able  to  refer  is  the 
discovery  at  Achtertyre,*  Morayshire,  of  four  "  broken  bits  of  tin," 
in  company  with  socketed  celts,  spear-heads,  and  bracelets.  These 
pieces  seem  to  be  fragments  of  a  single  bar  which  was  about 
6  inches  in  length,  of  oval  section,  and  somewhat  curved,  and  in 
weight  about  3  ounces.  Though  spoken  of  as  tin,  the  metal  is  in 
fact  a  soft  solder  composed,  according  to  Dr.  Stevenson  Mac- 
adam, of — 

Tin  .  78-66 

Lead  21-34 


100- 

This,  he  points  out,  is  a  more  fusible  alloy  than  the  ordinary 
plumbers'  solder,  which  consists  of  1  of  tin  to  2  of  lead,  and 
fuses  at  441  degrees  Fahr.,  as  it  contains  nearly  4  of  tin  to  1  of  lead, 
and  would  fuse  at  365  degrees.  Whether  this  bar  was  intended 
for  use  as  solder,  or  represents  a  base  tin  exported  to  Scotland 
from  the  tin-producing  districts,  is  an  interesting  question.  Pro- 
fessor Daniel  Wilson  t  has  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  in  all  the 
bronze  instruments  found  in  Scotland  which  have  been  submitted  to 
analysis  lead  is  uniformly  present,  though  in  varying  proportions. 
Soldering  J  is  considered  to  have  been  entirely  unknown  in  the 
Bronze  Age,  and  even  during  the  earlier  times  of  the  Iron  Age  ; 
but  the  art  of  burning  bronze  on  to  bronze  was  certainly  known, 
and  instances  of  its  having  been  practised  are  given  in  preceding 
pages. 

Some  fragments  of  pure  metallic  tin  have  from  time  to  time 
been  found  on  the  Continent.  A  small  hammered  bar  found  at 
the  Lake-dwelling  of  Estavayer,§  and  analyzed  by  M.  de  Fellenberg, 
was  free  from  lead,  zinc,  iron,  and  copper. 

Besides  being  found  in  Cornwall,  tin  occurs  in  France,  ||  Saxony, 
Silesia,  Bohemia,  Sweden,  Spain,  and  Portugal.  It  also  occurs  in 
Etruria,H  and  is  said  to  be  found  in  Chorassan.** 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ix.  p.  435.          t  "Preh.  Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  376. 
I  Lubbock,  "Preh.  Times,"  p.  44;    Von  Sacken,  "Das  Grabfeld  von  Hallatatt," 
p.  118.  §  Keller,  3er  Bericht,  p.  93. 

||  "  Manners  and  Customs  of  the  Anc.  Irish,"  O'Curry  and  Sullivan,  p.  ccccxix. 
f  "  Cong,  preh.,"  Buda-Pest,  vol.  i.  p.  242 ;  Engineer,  March  26,  1876. 
**  Arch,  fur  Anth.,  vol.  ix.  p.  265. 


426       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD    OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

This  metal  is  said  by  Dionysius*  to  have  been  struck  into  coins 
at  Syracuse,  but  none  such  are  at  present  known.  Among  the 
Ancient  Britons,  f  however,  tin  coins  cast  for  the  most  part  in 
wooden  moulds  were  in  circulation,  not  in  the  tin-producing  dis- 
tricts, but  in  Kent  and  the  neighbouring  parts  of  England.  Their 
date  is  probably  within  a  century  of  our  era,  either  before  or  after 
Christ. 

A  large  ingot  of  tin,  in  shape  like  the  letter  H,  was  dredged  up 
in  Falmouth  harbour.  +  It  is  2  feet  11  inches  long  and  about 
11  inches  wide,  and  3  inches  thick,  and,  though  a  small  piece  has 
been  cut  off  at  one  end,  it  still  weighs  158  Ibs.  It  is  shown  in 
Fig.  514.  The  late  Sir  Henry  James,  F.R.SJ  has  pointed  out 
that  the  form  in  which  the  ingot  is  cast  adapts  it  for  being  laid  in  the 
keel  of  a  boat,  and  for  being  slung  on  a  horse's  side,  two  of  them 


thus  forming  a  proper  load  for  a  pack-horse.  He  has  also  suggested 
that  this  was  the  form  of  ingot  in  which  the  tin  produced  in 
Cornwall  was  transported  to  Gaul,  and  thence  carried  overland,  as 
described  by  Diodorus  Siculus,  to  the  mouths  of  the  Rhone. 
Curiously  enough  this  author  speaks  of  the  blocks  being  in  the 
form  of  astragali,  with  which  this  ingot  fairly  coincides.  Other 
ingots  II  of  tin  of  different  form  have  also  been  found  in  Cornwall, 
but  there  appears  to  me  hardly  sufficient  evidence  to  determine 
their  approximate  date,  and  I  therefore  content  myself  with  men- 
tioning them.  A  lump  cast  in  a  basin-shaped  mould,  with  two 
holes  in  the  flat  face  converging  so  as  to  form  a  V-shaped  receptacle 
for  a  cord,  is  in  the  Blackmore  Museum  at  Salisbury. 

What  appear  to  be  ingots  of  copper  rather  than  votive  or  mor- 
tuary tablets  have  been  found  in  Sardinia,1[and  in  their  form  present 
a  close  analogy  with  this  ingot  of  tin,  though  they  are  of  much 

*  Jul.  Pollux.  "  Onom,"  lib.  ix.  c.  6,  p.  1055. 
t  Evans,  "  Coins  of  the  Anc.  Brit.,"  p.  123. 
I  Arch.  Joum.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  39 ;  whence  the  cut  is  borrowed. 

$  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxviii.  p.  196.     See  also  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  7,  for  an  inter- 
esting paper  on  Ancient  Metallurgy,  by  the  late  Prof.  J.  Phillips. 
||  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  39.  U  Spano,  "  Paleoetnol.  Sarda,"  p.  26. 


METHODS   OF   CASTING.  427 

smaller  dimensions.  Both  the  sides  and  ends  curve  inwards,  the 
notch  at  the  ends  of  some  being  semicircular.  They  are  counter- 
marked  with  a  kind  of  double  T. 

As  to  the  method  of  melting  the  metal  but  little  is  known.  It 
seems  probable,  however,  that  the  crucibles  employed  must  have 
been  vessels  of  burnt  clay  provided  with  handles  for  moving  them ; 
while  for  pouring  out  the  metal  small  ladles  of  earthenware  may 
have  been  used.  At  Robenhausen,*  on  Lake  Pfaffikon,  Switzer- 
land, small  crucibles  of  a  ladle-like  form  have  been  found,  in  some 
cases  with  lumps  of  bronze  still  in  them.  Crucibles  without 
handles  have  been  discovered  at  Unter-Uhldingen,t  in  the  Ueber- 
linger  See. 

The  methods  of  casting  were  various.     Objects  were  cast — 

1.  In  a  single  mould  formed  of  loam,  sand,  stone,  or  metal, 

the  upper  surface  of  the  casting  exhibiting  the  flat  surface 
of  the  molten  metal,  which  was  left  open  to  the  air.  In 
the  case  of  loam  or  sand  castings  a  pattern  or  model  would 
be  used,  which  might  be  an  object  already  in  use,  or  made 
of  the  desired  form  in  wood  or  other  soft  substance. 

2.  In  double  moulds  of  similar  materials.     The  castings  pro- 

duced in  this  manner  when  in  unfinished  condition  show 
the  joints  of  the  moulds.  When  sand  was  employed  a 
frame  or  flask  of  some  kind  must  have  been  used  to  retain 
the  material  in  place  when  the  upper  half  of  the  mould 
was  lifted  off  the  pattern.  The  loam  moulds  were  pro- 
bably burnt  hard  before  being  used.  In  many  cases  cores 
for  producing  hollows  in  the  casting  were  employed  in 
conjunction  with  these  moulds. 

3.  In  what  may  be  termed  solid  moulds.    For  this  process  the 

model  was  made  of  wax,  wood,  or  some  combustible 
material  which  was  encased  hi  a  mass  of  loam,  possibly 
mixed  with  cow-dung  or  vegetable  matter,  which  on 
exposure  to  heat  left  the  loam  or  clay  in  a  porous  condi- 
tion. This  exposure  to  fire  also  burnt  out  the  wax  or 
wood  model  and  left  a  cavity  for  the  reception  of  the  metal, 
which  was  probably  poured  in  while  the  mould  was  still 
hot. 

Sir  John  LubbockJ  regards  this  as  the  commonest  mode  of 
casting  during  the  Bronze  Age,  but  so  far  as  this  country  is  con- 

*  Keller,  "Lake-dwellings,"  Eng.  ed.,  p.  54.  t  Op.  tit.,  p.  118. 

I  "  Preh.  Times,"  p.  40. 


428       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF   MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

cerned  it  appears  to  me  to  have  been  very  seldom,  if  ever,  in  use. 
Except  in  highly  complicated  castings,  such  as  ring  within  ring,  no 
advantage  would  be  gained  by  adopting  the  process,  as  the  same 
result  could  usually  be  obtained  by  the  use  of  a  mould  in  two 
halves,  while  the  pattern  would  then  be  preserved.  In  comparing 
a  number  of  objects  together,  though,  like  the  six  hundred  and 
eighty- eight  specimens  of  celts  in  the  Dublin  Museum,  no  two  may 
appear  to  have  been  cast  in  the  same  mould,  it  does  not  follow 
that  this  was  actually  the  case,  for  allowance  must  be  made  for 
hammering,  polishing,  and  ornamenting,  which  were  subsequent 
processes,  and  also  for  wear  at  the  edge.  Even  in  castings  from 
the  same  metal  mould  there  will  be  considerable  variations,  from 
differences  in  the  amount  of  coating  used  to  prevent  the  hot 
metal  from  adhering  to  mould,  and  the  length  stopped  off  by  the 
core.  But  of  this  I  shall  shortly  speak. 

The  moulds  formed  of  burnt  clay  have  but  rarely  lasted  to  our 
times,  though  some  have  been  found  on  the  continent  of  Europe. 

One  for  a  perforated  axe  found  among  the  remains  of  Lake-dwell- 
ings near  Laibach,  in  Carniola,  is  in  the  museum  of  that  town. 
Others  will  subsequently  be  mentioned. 

The  single  moulds  found  within  the  United  Kingdom  are  all  of 
stone,  and  are  adapted  for  the  production  of  flat  celts,  rings, 
knives,  and  small  chisels.  In  some  cases  it  is  hard  to  say  whether 
a  mould  was  intended  to  be  used  alone  or  in  conjunction  with 
another  of  the  same  kind,  so  as  in  fact  to  be  only  the  half  of  a  mould. 

The  single  mould,  which  I  have  engraved  as  Fig.  515,  was 
found  near  Ballymena,  Co.  Antrim,  and,  as  will  be  seen,  is  for  a 
flat  celt  of  the  ordinary  form.  The  material  is  a  micaceous  sand- 
stone, which  a  recent  possessor  of  the  mould  has  thought  so  well 
adapted  for  use  as  a  whetstone,  that  the  mould  is  in  places  scored 
with  the  marks  where  apparently  a  cobbler's  awl  has  been  sharp- 
ened. A  celt  cast  in  such  a  mould  would  be  flatter  on  one  face 
than  the  other,  and  be  blunt  at  the  ends,  though  much  thinner 
there  than  in  the  middle.  Before  being  used  it  would  be  sub- 
mitted to  a  hammering  process,  which  would  render  the  two  faces 
nearly  symmetrical,  and  at  the  same  time  condense  the  metal  and 
render  it  harder  and  fitter  for  cutting  purposes,  especially  at  the 
edge  which  was  drawn  out.  In  an  Irish  specimen  in  my  collec- 
tion there  is  in  one  face  a  deep  conical  depression,  apparently 
caused  by  the  contraction  of  the  metal  in  cooling.  It  was  probably 
necessary  to  add  a  little  molten  metal  to  the  casting  while  cooling 


SINGLE   MOULDS    FOK   FLAT    CELTS. 


429 


in  order  to  avoid  such  defects.     The  sides  as  well  as  the  faces  of 
these  plain  celts  have  usually  been  wrought  with  the  hammer,  and 


Fig.  515. — Ballymena. 


it  seems  probable  that  some  even  of  the  flanged  celts  were  origi- 
nally plain  castings  in  an  open  mould. 

Moulds  of  the  same  kind  have  been  found,  though  rarely,  in 
England.      In  a  field  near  Cambo,*  near  Wallington,  Northumber- 

*  Arch,  ^liana,  vol.  iv.  p.  107;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  2. 


430       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND    METHOD   OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

land,  was  found  a  block  of  sandstone,  having  on  one  face  two 
moulds  for  flat  celts  of  different  sizes,  and  on  the  other  face  another 
such  mould,  and  also  one  for  a  flat  ring.  It  is  now  in  the  British 
Museum. 

Stone  blocks  with  moulds  cut  in  them  have  been  found  in  Scotland. 

One  with  a  mould  for  a  large  celt  in  the  centre,  and  near  it  in  one 
corner  of  the  slab  a  mould  for  a  very  small  celt,  was  found  in  a  cairn 
near  Kintore,  Aberdeenshire.* 

Another  large  block,  forming  the  end  of  a  cist,  near  Kilmartin, 
Argyleshire,f  has  nine  depressions  in  it  in  the  form  of  flat  celts,  which 
may  have  been  used  as  moulds.  They  are  barely  an  eighth  of  an  inch 
in  depth,  and  on  this  account  have  been  thought  to  be  pictorial  represen- 
tations rather  than  moulds.  With  a  metal  so  imperfectly  fluid  as  melted 
bronze,  castings  could  be  made  thicker  than  the  depth  of  the  moulds,  and 
it  is  by  no  means  impossible  that  this  stone  and  another  forming  part  of 
the  same  cist  may  have  been  intended  for  the  production  of  castings. 
The  second  slab  of  stone  may  have  served  for  casting  pins. 

The  stone  moulds  from  Trochrig,  near  Girvan,  Ayrshire,  J  and  Alford, 
Aberdeenshire,  §  with  depressions  of  various  forms  upon  them,  not  impro- 
bably belong  to  a  later  period  than  that  of  which  I  am  treating. 

A  mould  for  casting  rings,  2£  inches  in  diameter,  found  at  Kilmailie, 
Inverness-shire,  is  in  the  Museum  at  Edinburgh. 

One  for  two  flat  celts  on  the  one  face,  and  for  a  larger  celt  and 
perhaps  a  knife  on  the  other,  is  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at 
Edinburgh.  || 

These  moulds  are  more  abundant  in  Ireland. 

One  in  the  Belfast  Museum,^)  polyhedral  in  shape,  has  moulds  upon  four 
of  its  faces  for  flat  celts  of  different  sizes.  In  the  Bateman  Collection  is 
a  slab  of  schistose  stone  (7  inches  by  6  inches)  with  three  such  moulds 
upon  it.  It  was  found  near  Carrickfergus,  Co.  Antrim.** 

On  a  slab  in  the  Museum  of  the  Royal  Irish  Academy  f f  there  are 
moulds  for  two  flat  celts,  and  also  for  one  with  a  stop-ridge  and  a  loop. 
It  would  appear  as  if  the  founder  must  have  possessed  a  second  half  of 
this  latter  mould. 

Two  moulds  formed  of  stone,  and  apparently  intended  for  flat  or 
slightly  flanged  celts,  have  been  found  at  Bodio  in  the  Lago  di  Varese.JJ 

Moulds  for  palstaves  and  socketed  celts  have  been  found  both  of 
stone  and  of  bronze,  but  it  will  be  well  to  reserve  the  latter  until 
all  the  forms  of  moulds  made  of  stone  have  been  considered.  Such 
celt  moulds  have  always  been  made  in  halves. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  ii.  p.  33,  vol.  vi.  p.  209. 

f  Journ.  Ethnol.  Soc.,  vol.  ii.  p.  341 ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iv.  p.  513.     Arch. 
Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  146.     Only  seven  depressions  are  there  described. 
J  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i.  p.  45. 
$  Ibid.,  vol.  iv.  p.  383,  and  v.  p.  109. 

||  Ibid.,  vol.  ii.  p.  34  ;  Wilson,  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  343,  pi.  v. 
f  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  335,  pi.  vi. ;  Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  392. 
«*  "  Catal.,"  p.  78.  tt  Wilde's  "  Catal.,"  p.  91,  fig.  72. 

+£  Pegazzoni,  "  L'uomo  preist.  nella  Prov.  di  Como,"  1878,  pi.  vi.  18 — 20. 


DOUBLE  STONE  MOULDS  FOR  PALSTAVES. 


431 


In  Fig.  516  is  shown  the  half  of  a  mould  for  palstaves,  which  is  now 
in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy.  The  other  half  is  with  it. 
They  are  formed  of  sandstone.  It  is  uncertain  in  what  part  of  Ireland 
they  were  found. 

Another  mould,  formed  of  mica  schist,  and  now  in  the  British  Museum, 
was  found  in  the  river  Bann,  and  was  intended  for  short  palstaves  about 
3£  inches  long, 

The  half  of  a  mould  for  casting  palstaves  of  a  somewhat  broader  forin 
was  found  near  Lough  Corrib,  Gralway,*  and  is  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum 
at  Edinburgh,  Another  has  been  engraved  by  Dunoyer,f  who  has  also 
figured  a  mould  for  a  looped  palstave,  from  the  Museum  of  the  Univer- 
sity of  Dublin.  A  stone  mould  from  Ireland,  for  palstaves  with  double 


Fig.  516.— Ireland.        J 


Fig.  517.— Ireland. 


loops,  is  in  the  Antiquarian  Museum  at  Edinburgh.  As  the  halves  of 
these  stone  moulds  are  rarely  made  so  as  to  be  dowelled  together, 
they  are  almost  always  of  exactly  the  same  size  externally,  so  as  to  be 
readily  adjustable  into  their  proper  position  when  tied  together  for  the 
reception  of  the  metal. 

The  half  of  a  mould  for  a  small  palstave,  with  transverse  edge,  is 
shown  full  size  in  Fig.  517.  The  original  is  of  green  schist,  and  is  in 
the  Eoyal  Academy  Museum  at  Dublin.  It  is  remarkable  that  a  mould 
for  so  rare  a  form  should  have  been  found.  A  stone  mould  for  trans- 
verse palstaves  of  the  same  kind  has,  however,  lately  been  discovered  in 
the  Lac  de  Bienne  J  by  Dr.  V.  Gross. 

On  the  Continent  stone  moulds  for  ordinary  palstaves  have  been  found 

*  Wilson,  "  Preh.  Ann.,"  vol.  i.  p.  358,  fig.  46.         t    Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  335. 
J  "  Les  dernieres  trouvailles  du  Lac  de  Bienne,"  1879,  pi.  i.  10  ;  "  Materiaux,"  1880, 
pi.  i.  10. 


432   METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE.   [CHAP.  XXI. 

in  some  numbers,  especially  in  the  Late  habitations.  In  the  museum  at 
Geneva  are  several  from  the  Station  of  Eaux  Vives.  The  wings  as  originally 
cast  were  vertical  to  the  blades,  so  that  they  might  be  withdrawn  from 
the  mould,  and  they  were  subsequently  hammered  over  to  form  the  side 
pockets,  as  in  Tig.  85. 

Moulds  for  looped  palstaves  have  been  found  in  the  Lac  du  Bourget, 
Savoy.*  One  of  them  is  in  my  own  collection.  A  broken  mould  for  a 
palstave  was  found  at  Billy  (Loir  et  Cher).f 

Others  have  been  found  in  Hungary.  J 

A  few  stone  moulds  for  casting  socketed  celts  have  been  found  in 
England.  The  half  of  one,  apparently  for  celts  without  loops,  was  found 
near  Milton,  Dorsetshire,  §  and  is  now  in  the  Dorchester  Museum.  It  has 
several  holes  on  the  face  of  the  slab,  as  if  for  the  reception  of  dowels,  on 
which  the  other  half  of  the  mould  would  fit. 

In  another  instance  a  set  of  moulds  has  been  formed  of  three  slabs  of 
stone,  and  would  produce  two  varieties  of  socketed  celts,  one  half  of  the 
mould  of  each  being  engraved  on  the  two  faces  of  the  central  slab.  It  is  only 
this  central  piece  which  has  been  preserved.  It  was,  I  believe,  found  at 
Bulford  Water,  near  Salisbury,  and  not  at  Chidbury  Hill,  near  Everley, 
as  stated  in  the  "Barrow  Diggers."  ||  On  one  face  is  the  mould  for  a 
single-looped  socketed  celt  about  4£  inches  long,  of  oblong  section,  with 
three  vertical  ribs  on  the  face  ;  on  the  other  is  that  for  a  double-looped 
celt  of  the  same  character,  but  about  5J  inches  long,  also  with  three 
vertical  ribs.  This  mould  is  formed  of  some  variety  of  greenstone,  and 
is  now  in  the  collection  of  the  Rev.  E.  Duke,  of  Lake  House,  near 
Salisbury. 

Stone  moulds  for  socketed  celts,  with  vertical  ribs  upon  them,  have  been 
found  in  the  Lacustrine  Station  of  Eaux  Vives,  near  Geneva.  There  are 
often  moulds  on  each  face  of  the  stones. 

Others  in  sandstone  for  socketed  celts  have  been  found  in  Hungary.^ 

Several  moulds  for  such  instruments  have  been  discovered  in  Sweden.** 
One  with  diagonal  air-passages,  like  those  in  Fig.  521,  is  in  the  Copen- 
hagen Museum. 

Stone  moulds  for  socketed  celts  have  also  been  found  in  Scotland. 
Two  pair  from  the  parish  of  Eosskeen,  Ross-shire,  |f  have  been  figured  by 
Professor  Daniel  Wilson.  They  are  for  looped  celts  rather  wide  and 
straight  at  the  edge,  about  5  inches  long  and  of  hexagonal  section.  The 
castings  from  the  one  are  plain  upon  the  faces  ;  in  those  from  the  other 
there  are  three  annulets  connected  by  raised  ribs,  much  the  same  as  on  one 
face  of  the  celt  from  Wigtonshire  (Fig.  166).  These  moulds  had  the  two 
halves  dowelled  together  when  in  use.  On  one  there  appears  to  be  a 
second  mould  for  a  small  flat  bar. 

In  Ireland  stone  moulds  for  socketed  celts  are  rare,  and  they  appear  to 

*  Exp.  Arch,  de  la  8m.,  1878,  pi.  iv.  187  ;  Chantre,  "Alb.,"  pi.  lii. 

t  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  x.  p.  112.  J  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  xii.  p.  185. 

§  "  The  Barrow  Diggers,"  p.  75,  pi.  v.  10.  It  is  so  badly  drawn  that  it  might  be 
taken  for  a  broken  mould  for  a  palstave.  Arch.,  vol.  xxviii.  p.  451. 

||  P.  78. 

IF  Hampel,  " Cat.  de  1'Exp.  prehist.,"  1876,  p.  134;  "Ant.  preh.  de  la  Hongrie;" 
"Materiaux,"  vol.  xii.  p.  184. 

**  Wittlock,  "  Jord-fynd  fran  Warend's  forhist.  Tid.,"  1874,  p.  68. 

ft  "Preh.  Ann,  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p.  345,  figs.  48  and  49.  Fig.  61  shows  a  casting 
from  one  of  the  moulds. 


STONE    MOULDS    FOR   DAGGERS. 


433 


have  been  for  the  most  part  cast  in  sand  or  loam.  There  is,  however,  in 
the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,*  the  half  of  a  mould  of  this 
kind  made  of  mica  slate,  and  much  worn  by  age  and  exposure,  apparently 
intended  for  a  ribbed  socketed  celt.  It  has  dowel-holes  on  the  face  of  the 
slab. 

The  mould,  or  more  properly  half  of  a  mould,  for  a  tanged  knife,  with 
a  central  rib  along  the  blade,  is  shown  in  Fig.  518.  It  is  of  close- 
grained  sandstone,  and  was  found  near  Ballymoney,  Co.  Antrim.  The 
surface  on  which  the  knife  has  been  engraved  is  ground  very  smooth,  as 


Fig.  518.— Ballymoney. 


Fig.  519.— Broughshane. 


if  to  fit  another  half  mould.  In  this  other  half  there  was  probably  little 
more  than  grooves  for  the  central  rib  and  tang,  as  the  mould  at  the  edge 
of  the  knife  would  produce  a  casting  fully  ^  inch  thick,  which  would 
require  a  good  deal  of  hammering  out. 

Fig.  519  shows  the  half  of  a  mould  for  a  dagger  blade  of  elegant 
form.  It  is  of  mica  slate,  and  was  found  near  Broughshane,  Co.  Antrim. 
It  is  about  1  inch  in  thickness ;  and  on  the  other  face  are  moulds  for  a 
small  flat  chisel  with  side  stops,  in  total  length  about  2f  inches,  for  a 
flat  triangular  celt-like  tool  about  1£  inch  long,  and  an  unfinished  mould 
for  a  segment  of  a  flat  ring. 


Wilde,  "  Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p. 
F  F 


I,  fig.  73. 


434       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF   MANUFACTURE.        [CHAP.  XXI. 

Stone  moulds  for  daggers  have  teen  found  in  the  Italian  terrain  are.* 


i 


Fig.  520.-Knighton.        J  Fig.  521.-Knighton.        i 

In  Figs.  520  and  521  I  have  reproduced  on  the  scale  of  one-fourth 
the  engravings  of  two  stone  moulds  which  were  found  near  Knighton, 
*  Gastaldi,  "  Nuovi  cenni,"  1862,  Tav.  iv.  22. 


STONE    MOULDS    FOR    SPEAR-HEADS. 


435 


but  in  the  parish,  of  Hennock,  near  Chudleigh,  Devon,  and  are  pub- 
lished in  the  Archceological  Journal*  They  are  of  a  light  greenish 
micaceous  schist,  such  as  occurs  in  Cornwall.  The  large  one  is  24£  inches 
in  length  by  3  inches  in  its  greatest  width,  the  smaller  is  21£  inches  long 
and  also  3  inches  wide.  When  found  the  two  halves  of  each  mould  were  in 
apposition ;  the  longer  mould  placed  vertically,  the  shorter  horizontally. 
As  will  be  seen,  they  are  for  the  production  of  rapier-shaped  blades. 
In  the  smaller  is  a  series  of  small  channels,  to  allow  of  the  escape  of 
air  during  the  process  of  casting.  On  the  larger,  by  the  side  of  the  main 
mould,  is  a  second,  which  would  produce  a  slightly  tapering  casting, 
ribbed  longitudinally  on  one  face 
and  flat  on  the  other.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  judge  of  the  purpose  for 
which  it  was  intended,  but  it 
may  possibly  have  been  at  once 
an  ornament  and  a  support  for 
the  scabbard  of  the  blade. 

Some  fluted  pieces  of  bronze, 
such  as  would  be  produced  from 
a  mould  of  this  kind,  are  in  the 
museum  at  Tours,  found  in  a 
hoard  at  St.  Genouph. 

A  mould  for  a  short  leaf -shaped 
sword  has  been  found  in  Ire- 
land, t 

A  stone  mould,  formed  of 
green  micaceous  schist,  and 
found  at  Maghera,  Co.  Deny, 
is  in  the  collection  of  Canon 
Greenwell,  F.R.S.,  and  is 
shown  in  Fig.  522.  As  will 
be  seen,  it  is  for  a  spear-head 
of  the  ordinary  Irish  type, 
with  loops  on  the  socket. 
These,  however,  were  pro- 
bably flattened  down  during  the  finishing  process.  The  outside  of 
the  mould  has  been  neatly  rounded,  and  has  shallow  grooves  in  it 
to  assist  in  keeping  the  string  in  place  with  which  the  two  halves 
of  the  mould  were  bound  together  when  ready  for  use. 

In  the  same  collection  is  the  half  of  a  mould  for  spear-heads,  from 
Armoy,  Co.  Antrim.  It  is  much  like  the  figure,  but  7f  inches  long. 

I  have  the  half  of  a  mould  for  a  nearly  similar  spear-head,  made  of 
light  brown  stone,  with  the  sides  left  square,  and  not  rounded.  This  is 
also  from  the  North  of  Ireland.  It  is  difficult  to  understand  the  manner 
in  which  the  cores  for  forming  the  sockets  of  the  spear-heads  were  sup- 
ported in  the  moulds.  Possibly  small  pins  of  bronze  were  attached  to  the 


Fig.  522.— Maghera. 


*  Vol.  ix.  p.  185. 


t  Jfem.  des  Ant.  du  Nord,  1872—77,  p.  142. 
F  F  2 


436       METAL,   MOULDS,    AND    METHOD    OF   MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

clay  core,  which  kept  it  in  position,  but  which  during  the  casting  process 
got  burnt  into  the  molten  metal.  I  have,  however,  found  no  actual  traces 
of  such  a  contrivance.  On  examining  broken  spear-heads  it  will  some- 
times be  found  that  the  socket  core  inside  the  blade,  instead  of  being  simply 
conical,  has  lateral  projections  running  into  the  thicker  part  of  the  blade. 

A  mould  for  spear-heads  of  the  same  kind  as  Fig.  521,  found  near 
Claran  Bridge,*  in  the  barony  of  Dunkellen,  Co.  Galway,  has  at  the  base 
two  pin-holes  about  1  inch  long  and  £  inch  in  diameter.  Their  axes  are 
parallel  to  that  of  the  socket.  These  may  possibly  be  connected  with 
the  steadying  of  the  core. 

A  stone  mould  found  at  the  edge  of  Lough  Earner,  Co.  Cavan,f  and 
now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Eoyal  Irish  Academy,  is  quadrangular  in 
section,  with  moulds  for  very  small  lance-heads  on  three  of  its  faces.  On 
the  fourth  there  are  marks  of  a  worn-out  mould.  The  corresponding 
halves  have  not  been  found.  Such  instances  of  several  half -moulds  on  a 
single  block  of  stone  are  not  unfrequent. 


Fig.  523.— Lough  Gur.        J 


A  moiety  of  a  stone  mould  for  casting  spear-heads  of  various 
sizes,  and  also  pointed  objects,  "  possibly,"  though  not  probably, 
"arrow-heads,"  was  found  at  Lough  Gur,+  Co.  Limerick,  and  is  now 
in  the  British  Museum.  It  is  a  four-sided  prism,  65  inches  long 
and  2J  inches  broad  at  one  end  of  each  face,  and  If  inch  at  the 
other.  A  second  similar  prism  would,  it  has  been  observed,  give  four 
perfect  moulds  for  casting  spear-heads  slightly  varying  in  form,  but 
in  each  case  provided  with  side  loops.  These  loops  are  as  usual 
semicircular  in  form  on  the  mould,  and  were  no  doubt  destined  to 
be  flattened  in  the  usual  manner  by  a  subsequent  process  of  ham- 
mering. There  is  one  special  feature  in  this  mould,  viz.  that  at 
the  base  of  the  blade  there  is  a  transverse  notch  in  the  stone, 
evidently  destined  to  receive  a  small  pin,  which  would  serve  to 
keep  the  clay  core  for  the  socket  in  its  proper  position.  There  is 
a  similar  transverse  notch  in  one  of  the  smaller  moulds  for  the 
pointed  objects.  This  mould  is  shown  in  Fig.  523. 

*  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  349,  pi.  xxxiv.  1,  2.      f  Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.  I.  A.,"  p.  93. 
J  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  170.     The  cut  is  kindly  lent  by  the  Council  of  the  Institute. 


STONE    MOULDS    FOR    SPEAR-HEADS. 


437 


There  is  a  similar  notch  in  a  mould  for  leaf- 
shaped  spear-heads  without  loops  in  the  Preusker 
Collection  at  Dresden.  It  would  seem  as  if  the 
pin  which  formed  the  hole  for  the  rivet  was  also 
of  use  to  support  the  core.  Another  such  mould  is 
in  the  museum  at  Modena. 

There  are  similar  notches  in  a  stone  mould  for 
spear-heads,  in  one  of  burnt  clay  for  socketed 
knives,  found  at  Mcerigen,  in  the  Lake  of  Bienne, 
and  in  one  found  in  the  Lake  of  Varese.* 

A  small  Irish  mould  for  casting  broad  leaf-shaped 
lance-heads  without  loops  is  in  the  Antiquarian 
Museum  at  Edinburgh. 

A  mould  of  much  the  same  character  as  the 
Irish  examples  was  found  near  Campbelton,t 
in  Kintyre,  Argyleshire.  It  is  formed  of  dark 
serpentine,  and  one  of  its  halves  is  shown  in 
Fig.  524.  On  the  same  spot  were  found  two 
polished  stone  celts  and  another  stone  mould 
for  spear-heads,  in  two  portions,  also  of  ser- 
pentine, shown  in  Figs.  525  and  526,  both 
sides  being  cut  for  moulds,  one  for  a  looped 
spear-head  and  the  other  for  one  without  loops. 
Dr.  Arthur  Mitchell,  who  has  described  this 


Fig.  524.— Campbelton. 


find,  says  that  in  this  second  mould  the  two  halves  are  not  alike, 


Fig.  525.— Campbelton.       £  Fig.  526.— Campbelton. 

*  Eanchet  e  Regazzoni,  Atti  della  Soc.  Ital.  de  sc.  nat.,  vol.  xxi. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  vi.  p.  48,  pi.  vi.     I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the 
use  of  these  four  blocks. 


438       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND    METHOD   OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.  XXI. 

as  in  the  one  first  described.  In  this  case  one-half  has  the  shape 
of  the  spear-head  deeply  cut  into  the  stone,  so  as  to  include  the  whole 
thickness  of  the  edge  of  the  spear,  and  the  other  side  has  simply 
the  midrib  alone  cut  on  it,  and  the  rest  of  that  side  of  the  mould 
is  gently  bevelled  towards  the  edges,  the  result  of  which  simple  plan 
is  that  when  the  two  sides  are  laid  together  a  perfect  mould  is 
made,  the  two  sides  of  the  casting  being  almost  exactly  alike,  less 
labour  being  thus  required  than  in  forming  an  outline  exactly 
alike  on  both  sides  of  the  stone  mould,  and  the  result  being 
equally  satisfactory. 

An  English.,  or  rather  Welsh,  quadrangular  mould,  much  like  that 
from  Lough  Gur,  was  found  between  Bodwrdin  *  and  Tre  Ddafydd, 
Anglesea.  It  is  formed  of  hone-stone  9£  inches  long,  with  the  sides 
tapering  from  2  inches  to  1£  inch.  It  is  adapted  for  casting  looped 
spear-heads  of  two  sizes,  and  what  has  been  regarded  as  a  double-looped 
celt.  The  fourth  side  has  a  conical  groove,  and  may  be  the  complement 
of  another  more  defined  mould,  as  is  the  case  with.  Fig.  525s.  It  has 
been  thought  to  have  been  for  a  spike-like  javelin.  What  has  been 
regarded  as  the  mould  for  double-looped  celts  seems  also  to  be  the  shallow 
half  of  a  mould  for  spear-heads.  In  the  museum  at  Clermont  Ferrand  f 
there  is  an  analogous  stone  mould  for  palstaves  of  three  types  and  a 
point  or  ferrule. 

Of  other  stone  moulds,  I  may  mention  one  for  casting  buckles  of  a 
kind  like  those  from  Polden  Hill,  which  was  found  at  Camelford,  Corn- 
wall. J  This  is  not  improbably  of  Late  Celtic  date. 

I  have  a  flat  oval  slab  of  compact  grit,  about  2  inches  thick,  having  on 
one  face  a  mould  for  a  thin  oval  plate  of  metal  about  5  inches  by  4£  inches, 
and  on  the  other  a  mould  for  a  rather  thicker  oval  plate,  about  6  inches 
by  4£  inches.  It  was  found  near  Nantlle,  Carnarvon,  and  was  given  me 
by  Mr.  R.  D.  Darbishire,  F.S.A.  I  am  uncertain  as  to  the  period  to 
which  it  ought  to  be  assigned. 

Of  foreign  moulds  of  stone  besides  those  already  cited,  I  may  mention 
some  for  double-ended  hatchets  and  for  flat  celts  which,  have  been  found 
in  the  Island  of  Sardinia.  § 

A  number  of  moulds  formed  of  stone,  principally  mica-schist,  were 
found  by  Dr.  Schliemann  ||  during  his  excavations  on  the  presumed  site 
of  Troy.  They  were  for  casting  flat  celts,  tanged  spear-heads  or  daggers, 
and  various  other  forms.  Several  of  the  blocks  had  moulds  on  both  sides 
and  ends,  and  served  for  casting  as  many  as  a  dozen  different  objects. 

The  moulds  made  of  bronze  which  have  been  found  in  this 
country  are  for  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  and  gouges  only.  They 
appear  to  be  more  abundant  in  England  than  in  any  of  the  neigh- 
bouring parts  of  Europe.  At  one  time  the  whole  school  of  English 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  p.  257,  vol.  vi.  p.  385  ;  Lindenschmit,  "A.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  ii. 
Heft.  xii.  Taf.  i.  5. 

t  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  166. 

%  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv.  p.  148.  §  Spano,  "  Paleoetnol.  Sard.,"  p.  27. 

||  "Troy  and  its  Remains,"  pp.  82,  110,  139,  173,  261,  &c. 


BRONZE    MOULDS    FOR    PALSTAVES. 


439 


antiquaries  regarded  the  moulds  for  socketed  celts  as  cases  or 
sheaths  specially  prepared  to  hold  such  instruments.*  To  Vallancey, 
I  think,  belongs  the  credit  of  being  the  first  to  recognise  their 
true  character.  In  writing  about  the  half  of  a  bronze  mould  for 
palstaves  found  in  Ireland,  he  observes,  t  "  Dr.  Borlase  and  Mr. 
Lort  had  seen  brass  cases  of  these  instruments,  which  fitted  them 
as  exactly  as  if  they  had  been  the  molds  in  which  the  instru- 
ments were  cast.  I  cannot  conceive  why  these  gentlemen  hesitate 


Fig.  527.— Hotham  Carr. 


to  call  them  molds,  as  a  certain  proof  that  they  were  manufactured 
in  Ireland,  where  the  Romans  came  not,  either  as  friends  or  foes, 
the  molds  are  found  in  our  bogs  ;  they  are  of  brass  also,  mixed 
with  a  greater  quantity  of  iron,  or  in  some  manner  tempered  much 
harder  than  the  instruments."  I  am  not  sure  that  the  latter 
remark  as  to  the  comparative  hardness  of  the  moulds  holds  good 
in  all  cases,  otherwise  the  correctness  of  the  opinion  expressed  by 
Vallancey,  now  about  a  hundred  years  ago,  is  undeniable. 

*  See  Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  108  et  seqq.  t  "Collectanea,"  vol.  iv.  p.  59. 


440       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.   XXI. 

In  Fig.  527  are  given  three  views  of  one  half  of  a  complete  mould 
for  palstaves,  which  was  found  with  a  hoard  of  bronze  objects,  includ- 
ing seven  palstaves  without  loops,  at  Hotham  Carr,  in  Yorkshire,  E.R. 
It  is  in  the  collection  of  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S.  Among  the 
palstaves  which  were  found  with  it  only  one  was  in  an  un- 
damaged condition.  As  will  be  seen  from  the  figure,  there  are 
projections  or  dowels  on  the  face  of  this  half  of  the  mould  which 
fit  into  corresponding  depressions  in  the  counterpart,  so  as  to 

steady  the  two  halves  when 
brought  together  and  keep 
them  in  proper  position.  At 
the  top  is  a  cup-shaped 
cavity  for  the  reception  of 
the  metal.  Any  portion  of 
the  casting  which  occupied 
this  part  of  the  mould  was 
broken  off  from  the  palstave 
when  it  was  cool,  and  was 
kept  for  re-melting.  Such 
waste  pieces,  or  jets,  from  the 
moulds  are  of  common  occur- 
rence in  the  old  founders' 
hoards,  and  some  will  be 
subsequently  noticed. 

Another  mould  for  simple 
palstaves  was  found  in  Danes- 
field,  near  Bangor,*  in  1800. 
It  is  for  a  blade  rather  wider 
at  the  edge  and  narrower  in 
the  shank  than  that  roduced 


a  looped  palstave  of  about  the  same  size.  One  half  of  each  pair  of 
moulds  is  in  the  British  Museum,  and  the  other  half  in  Lord  Bray- 
brooke's  collection  at  Audley  End.  The  half  of  a  bronze  mould  for  a 
simple  palstave,  with  a  shield-shaped  ornament  below  the  stop-ridge, 
was  found  in  Ireland.f  One  of  the  same  kind  was  lately  in  the  collec- 
tion of  Mr.  Stevenson  of  Lisburn. 

In  the  British  Museum  is  another  mould  for  looped  palstaves,  which  is 
shown  in  Figs.  528  and  529,  for  the  use  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  the 
Council  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries.  J  The  original  was  found  in  Wiltshire. 
It  is  remarkable  as  bearing  on  each  of  its  halves  bands  evidently  cast  from 
actual  twine  which  has  been  upon  the  model  ;  but  the  bands  on  the  two 

*  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  386,  vol.  xviii.  p.  166  ;  Arch.  Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  128. 
t  Vallancey,  "  Coll.,"  vol.  iv.  p.  59,  pi.  x.  10.  I  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iii.  p.  158. 


BRONZE    MOULDS    FOR    SOCKETED    CELTS. 


441 


halves  do  not  coincide,  being  on  the  one  placed  higher  than  on  the  other. 
The  sides  are  also  joggled  together  in  a  singular  manner.  As  to  the 
bands  of  cording,  it  may  be  that  the  model  of  the  first  half  of  the  mould 
was  formed  of  clay,  which  when  dry,  in  order  to  prevent  its  being  broken, 
was  tied  on  to  the  palstave  on  which  it  had  been  shaped,  and  was  thus 
moulded  in  clay  or  loam ;  and  that  afterwards,  when  the  second  half  of 
the  mould  had  to  be  cast  by  a  similar  process,  the  model  for  it  was  tied 
on  to  the  half-mould  already  formed,  the  binding  being  in  contact  with 
the  side  of  the  band  already  in  relief  upon  the  back  and  sides  of  the  half - 
mould. 

Several  palstave  moulds  formed  of  bronze  have  been  found  in  different 
countries  in  Europe. 

The  half  of  one,  found  in  the  Saone,  for  looped  palstaves,  is  in  the 
museum  at  Lyons.* 

General  A.  Pitt 
Eivers,  F.E.S.,  has  one 
from  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Macon.f 

M.  Charles  Seidler,  of 
Nantes,  has  another. 

Another  from  the 
hoard  of  Notre- Dame 
d'Or,  Vienne,  is  in  the 
museum  at  Poitiers. 

M.  Forel  has  another 
f  oxind  in  the  Lake-dwel- 
lings at  Morges.J 

A  palstave  mould  of 
bronze,  found  near 
Medingen,  is  in  the 
museum  at  Hanover.  § 
The  half  of  one  found 
at  Polsen,  near  Merse- 
burc:,  II  is  in  that  of 


Fig.  530— Harty. 


Durg,|| 
Berlin. 

Another  bronze  mould  from  the  neighbourhood  of  Grriinberg,^  is  in  the 
museum  at  Darmstadt. 

There  are  several  bronze  moulds  of  this  character  in  the  Museum  of 
Northern  Antiquities  at  Copenhagen. 

In  Figs.  530  and  531  are  engraved  the  halves  of  two  moulds 
for  casting  socketed  celts  of  different  sizes  and  patterns,  which 
were  found  with  a  number  of  other  relics  in  the  Isle  of  Harty, 
Sheppey,  and  are  now  in  my  own  collection.  I  have  already 
given  an  account  of  this  discovery  elsewhere  ;  **  but  as  it  throws  so 

*  Chantre,  "Album,"  pi.  i. ;  "  Age  du  Br.,"  lere.  ptie.,  p.  26. 

t  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  433. 

t  Keller,  3er  Bericht,  p.  109,  pi.  vii.  43  ;  Troyon,  "Hab.  Lac.,"  pi.  x.  15. 

I  Lindenschmit,  "Alt.  u.  h.  V.,"  vol.  ii.  Heft.  xii.  Taf.  i.  3. 

||  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "  Die  Bronze-schwerter  des  K.  Mus.  zu  Berlin,"  Taf.  xiv.  9. 

H  Lindenschmit,  ubi  sup.,  Taf.  i.  4. 

**  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  408;    "Cong,  preh.,"  Stockholm  vol.  i.  p.  445. 


442       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD    OF    MANUFACTURE.       [CHAP.   XXI. 


much  light  upon  the  whole  process  of  casting  as  practised  towards  the 
close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  it  will  he  desirable  to  give  a  somewhat 
detailed  account  of  the  entire  find  and  its  teachings  in  this  place. 
The  hoard,  which  may  very  fairly  be  described  as  the  stock-in- 
trade  of  an  ancient  bronze-founder,  consisted  of  the  following 
articles — 

Both  halves  of  the  mould,  Fig.  530. 
5  celts  cast  in  this  mould  and  a  fragment. 
Both  halves  of  the  mould,  Fig.  531. 
1  celt  cast  in  it. 

One-half  of  a  smaller  mould  with  a  portion  of  a  lead  lining 
adhering  to  it,  as  kindly  determined  for  me  by  Dr.  J.  Percy,  F.R.S. 
3  celts,  more  or  less  worn  out,  apparently  cast  in  it. 

2   large  celts  from   different 
moulds. 

2  small  socketed  celts  from 
other  and  different  moulds. 

Both  halves  of  a  gouge  mould, 
Fig.  532. 

2    gouges,    both    from    one 

II  mould,     but     it     is     doubtful 

whether  they  are  from  this.    See 
Fig.  205. 

2  pointed  tools,  Fig.  220. 
1    double-edged    knife,    Fig. 
253. 

Fig.  53i.-Harty.     i  i  single-edged  knife,  Fig.  260. 

1  perforated  disc,  Fig.  503. 
1  ferrule,  Fig.  377- 

1  part  of  a  curved  bracelet-like  object  of  doubtful  use,  with 
small  hole  near  the  end. 

1  hammer  or  anvil,  Fig.  211. 

1  small  hammer,  Fig.  212. 

2  pieces  of  rough  copper. 
1  whetstone,  Fig.  540. 

Of  the  largest  mould  itself,  Fig.  530,  not  much  need  be  said. 
The  dowels  on  the  face  of  one  of  the  halves  have  been  much  injured 
by  oxidation,  so  that  the  two  parts  of  the  mould  do  not  now  fit  so 
well  together  as  they  did  originally.  On  the  outside  of  each  valve 
are  two  projecting  pins  intended  to  hold  the  cord  in  position,  by 
which  the  two  parts  of  the  mould  were  held  together  when  in  use. 


THE   HARTY  HOARD.  443 

As  will  be  seen,  the  mould  itself  is  somewhat  bell-mouthed.  Of 
the  ornamental  "  flanches  "  on  the  celt,  I  have  already  given  the 
history  at  page  108.  The  instruments  cast  from  this  mould,  and 
present  in  the  hoard,  are  five  in  number,  four  in  fairly  perfect 
condition,  and  one  broken  in  two  in  the  middle.  Though  cast  in 
the  same  mould,  no  two  are  absolutely  alike.  Not  only  do  they 
vary  in  width  at  their  edges — the  natural  result  of  one  having 
been  more  freely  hammered  out  than  another — but  in  the  upper 
part,  to  which  very  little  has  been  done  in  the  way  of  hammering 
or  grinding  since  the  celt  left  the  mould,  there  are  striking  differ- 
ences. As  will  be  seen,  the  mould  is  calculated  to  produce  three 
parallel  mouldings  round  the  mouth  of  each  celt ;  but  in  one  of 
the  castings  only  two  of  these  mouldings  are  present ;  in  another 
there  are  three,  and  there  is  metal  enough  beyond  to  represent 
half  the  width  of  another  moulding.  In  two  others  the  length  is 
equivalent  to  nearly  another  moulding,  so  that  the  celts  appear  to 
have  four  mouldings  round  their  mouths  ;  and  in  the  fifth  celt 
there  is  a  collar  of  plain  metal  extending  -§  inch  beyond  the  three 
bands  (see  Fig.  1 1 3.)  On  comparing  this  instrument  with  that 
first  described,  the  difference  in  the  length  above  the  loop  is 
upwards  of  ^  inch.  This  difference  can  only  be  accounted  for 
by  a  difference  in  the  arrangement  of  the  mould  and  core  at 
the  time  of  casting.  On  comparing  the  interior  of  one  celt  with 
that  of  another,  it  is  evident  that  the  core  was  not  produced  in 
any  mould  or  core-box,  as  the  small  projecting  ribs  of  metal  left  as 
usual  to  help  in  steadying  the  haft  vary  in  number  and  position. 
In  the  case  of  the  celt  broken  in  two  in  the  middle,  the  core  has 
been  placed  so  much  out  of  the  centre  that  there  is  a  large  hole 
in  the  casting  where  there  was  not  room  for  the  metal  to  run. 
The  system  adopted  appears,  therefore,  to  have  been  much  as 
follows. 

First,  the  mould  was  tied  together  in  proper  position,  and  loam 
or  clay  was  rammed  into  it  so  as  tightly  to  fill  the  upper  part. 
The  mould  was,  secondly,  taken  apart — and  the  clay  removed 
and  probably  left  to  become  nearly  dry.  Thirdly,  the  lower  part 
of  the  clay  was  then  trimmed  to  form  the  core,  a  shoulder  being 
left  which  would  form  the  mould  for  the  top  of  the  celt.  The 
upper  part  of  the  clay  would  be  left  untouched,  beyond  having 
two  channels  cut  in  it  to  allow  of  the  passage  of  the  melted  metal. 
Fourthly,  the  mould  would  be  tied  together  again  with  the  pre- 
pared core  inside,  the  untrimmed  part  of  which  would  form  a 


444   METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE.   [CHAP.  XXI. 

guide  for  its  due  position  in  the  mould.  Fifthly,  the  mould  would 
then  be  placed  vertically,  probably  by  being  stuck  into  sand,  and 
the  melted  metal  would  be  poured  down  the  channels.  When  cool 
the  runners  thus  formed  would  be  broken  off,  and  the  fractured 
surfaces  would  be  hammered  or  ground.  The  knife  found  with 
the  hoard  was  probably  used  for  cutting  the  channels  and  trimming 
the  core.  If  such  a  process  as  that  which  I  have  described  were 
in  use,  it  is  evident  that  the  chances  would  be  much  against  the 
shoulders  of  the  clay  core  being  always  cut  at  exactly  the  same 
place,  and  we  have  at  once  a  reason  for  the  variation  here  ob- 
served. 

There  is  another  cause  for  slight  variations  in  the  sharpness  of 
the  mouldings  and  the  other  details  of  the  castings.  In  order  to 
prevent  the  molten  bronze  from  adhering  to  the  bronze  mould,  the 
latter  must  have  been  smeared  over  with  something  by  way  of 
protection,  so  as  to  form  a  thin  film  between  the  metal  of  the 
mould  and  that  of  the  casting.  Modern  founders,  when  casting 
pewter  in  brass,  or  even  iron,  moulds,*  "  anoint  "  the  latter  with 
red  ochre  and  white  of  egg,  or  smoke  the  inside  of  the  mould  ;  and 
our  plumbers  prevent  solder  from  amalgamating  with  lead  by 
using  lamp-black  and  size,  or  even  by  rubbing  it  with  a  dock-leaf. 
No  doubt  the  ancient  founders  had  some  equally  simple  method, 
such  as  brushing  the  mould  over  with  a  very  thin  coat  of  marl. 
Turning  now  to  the  second  mould,  Fig.  531,  it  will  be  seen  that 
just  below  the  mouldings  there  is  accidentally  present  a  sharply 
defined  small  recess  ;  the  impression,  however,  of  this  recess  on 
the  celt  cast  in  this  mould  is  not  nearly  so  sharp,  probably  in  con- 
sequence of  the  mould  having  been  smeared  as  lately  suggested. 
It  will  also  be  noticed  that  though  there  is  a  double  band  of 
mouldings  in  the  mould,  there  is  but  one  and  a  fraction  on  the 
celt  itself,  which  is  shown  in  Fig.  114. 

The  outside  of  this  mould  is  provided  with  three  knobs  to  keep 
the  binding  cord  from  slipping  off.  The  other  and  smallest  half- 
mould  has  a  single  projection  in  the  middle,  like  an  imperfectly 
formed  loop.  The  three  celts  which  were  apparently  cast  in  this 
mould  show  great  uniformity  at  their  upper  ends,  and  to  the 
reason  for  this  I  think  the  lead  adhering  to  the  mould  furnishes  a 
clue.  It  is  evident  that  if,  in  preparing  the  cores,  instead  of 
beginning  by  having  the  mould  empty  and  ramming  clay  into  it, 

*  Holtzappf el,  "Turning  and  Mech.  Manip.,"  vol.  i.  p.  321;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv. 
p.  337. 


THE   HARTY    HOARD.  445 

which  was  subsequently  to  be  trimmed,  the  founder  placed  a  celt 
in  the  mould,  its  socket  would  act  as  a  core-box  or  mould  for  a  clay 
core  which  would  require  no  further  trimming  so  far  as  the  part  of 
forming  the  socket  was  concerned.  On  opening  out  the  mould 
this  core  could  be  withdrawn  from  the  socket  of  the  model  celt, 
and  when  dry  would  be  ready  for  use.  Perhaps  in  the  celts  with 
long  and  not  highly  tapering  sockets  there  would  be  a  difficulty 
in  getting  out  the  clay  unbroken,  and  the  process  would  not  be 
found  to  answer  ;  but  in  the  case  of  the  small  celts  there  would 
probably  be  less  difficulty.  In  this  mould  I  think  we  have  the 
remains  of  a  celt  formed  of  lead,  an  instrument  which  would  be 
utterly  useless  as  a  cutting  tool,  but  which  might  well  have  been 
made  and  kept  as  a  core-box.  The  very  fact  of  its  being  made  of 
another  metal  would  prevent  its  being  confounded  with  the  other 
castings  and  being  bartered  away ;  while  in  the  first  instance  a  casting 
in  lead  might  have  been  made  on  a  wooden  core,  which  could  pro- 
bably be  trimmed  to  the  exact  shape  required  more  readily  than  one 
of  clay.  I  have  elsewhere*  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  wooden 
moulds  were  in  use  among  the  Ancient  Britons  for  the  casting  of 
coins  formed  of  tin.  Several  socketed  celts  made  of  lead  have  from 
time  to  time  been  found,  though  not  in  association  with  bronze- 
founders'  hoards,  and  have  been  a  great  puzzle  to  antiquaries.  One 
found  at  Alnwick,t  near  Sleaford,  Lincolnshire,  was  thought  to 
have  come  from  a  barrow.  One  found  with  bronze  celts  in  the 
Morbihan,  is  in  the  collection  of  the  Rev.  Canon  Greenwell,  F.R.S., 
but  it  is  doubtful  whether  it  was  used  as  a  core-box.  The  use 
which  I  have  suggested  for  them  is  at  all  events  one  that  is 
possible,  but  we  must  wait  for  further  discoveries  before  accepting 
it  as  the  only  cause  for  their  existence. 

A  mould  for  sword  hilts  found  in  Italy,  +  and  now  in  the  museum 
at  Munich,  is  formed  by  three  pieces  of  bronze,  even  the  core  by 
which  the  cavity  in  them  was  produced  being  formed  of  that  metal. 

But  that  the  cores  were  frequently  if  not  always  made  of  clay, 
and  not,  as  has  been  sometimes  supposed,  of  metal,  is  proved  by 
the  numbers  of  socketed  celts  which  from  time  to  time  have  been 
found  with  the  cores  still  in  them,  though  this,  it  is  true,  has  been 
the  case  in  France  rather  than  in  England.  In  the  great  hoard  of 
socketed  celts  found  near  Ple'nee  Jugon,  in  Brittany,  the  majority 

*  "  Anc.  British  Coins,"  p.  124. 

t  Proc.  Geol.  and  Polyt.  Soc.  of  Yorkshire,  1866,  p.  439. 

I  Lindenschmit,  "Alt.  u.  h.  Vorz.,"  Heft.  i.  Taf.  ii.  10,  11,  12. 


446   METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE.   [CHAP.  XXI. 


were  as  they  had  come  from  the  mould,  with  the  clay  cores  still  in 
them,  burnt  as  hard  as  brick  by  the  heat  of  the  metal.  I  have 
already  mentioned  this  fact  in  describing  the  tool  from  the  Harty 
hoard,  which  appears  to  have  been  used  for  extracting  the  cores. 
I  have  also  described  the  anvil,  if  such  it  be,  and  the  hammer, 
Figs.  211  and  212,  by  means  of  which,  probably,  the  edges  of  the 
celts  were  drawn  out  and  hardened.  I  will  now  add  that  the  celt, 
Fig.  114,  is  too  long  and  too  broad  at  the  edge  for  that  part  of 
it  to  enter  into  the  mould  in  which  it  was  cast.  This  shows  how 
much  its  edge  was  drawn  out  by  hammering.  The  final  sharp- 
ening was  no  doubt  effected  by  the  whetstone,  Fig.  540. 


Fig.  552.— Harty.       * 

The  other  mould  from  this  hoard  is  almost  unique  of  its  kind. 
Two  views  of  each  of  its  halves  are  given  in  Fig.  532.  Originally 
there  was  a  loop  on  the  back  of  each  half,  but  from  one  this  has  in 
old  times  been  broken  off.  The  arrangement  for  carrying  the  core  is 
different  from  what  it  seems  to  have  been  in  the  other  moulds.  There 
is  in  the  upper  part  of  the  mould  when  put  together  a  transverse 
hole,  which  would  produce  what  may  be  termed  trunnions  on  the 
clay  core,  and  assist  materially  in  holding  it  in  proper  position 
during  the  process  of  casting.  From  the  upper  surfaces  of  the 
gouges  found  with  the  mould,  it  appears  that  there  were  two 
channels  cut  for  the  runners  of  metal,  one  at  the  middle  of  each 
half  of  the  mould,  so  as  to  alternate  with  the  joint  of  the  mould 
through  which  the  air  could  escape  during  the  casting  process. 


BRONZE  MOULDS  FOR  GOUGES  AND  CELTS.          447 

What  appears  to  be  part  of  a  mould  for  gouges  was  found  in  the 
hoard  of  Notre-Dame  d'Or,  and  is  now  in  the  museum  at  Poitiers. 

I  must  now  return  to  the  other  examples  of  moulds  for  socketed 
celts  which  have  been  found  in  this  country. 

One,  with  external  loops  on  each  half,  like  that  on  Fig.  532s,  was  found 
with  looped  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  and  broken  dagger  or  sword  blades, 
at  Wilmington,*  Sussex,  and  is  now  in  the  museum  at  Lewes.  All  these 
objects,  as  is  the  case  in  many  other  hoards,  had  been  deposited  in  a  vessel 
of  coarse  pottery. 

Another  mould,  found  with  eleven  celts  and  fragments  of  weapons  at 
Eaton,f  near  Norwich,  has  smaller  and  broader  loops  near  the  top.  On 
each  side  of  the  face  of  one  half,  a  little  distance  from  the  actual  mould, 
and  roughly  following  its  contour,  is  a  shallow  groove,  into  which  fits  a 
corresponding  ridge  on  the  counterpart.  The  outer  face  of  each  half  is 
ornamented  with  two  slightly  curved  vertical  ribs,  one  on  each  side  of  the 
loop,  and  joined  at  the  base  by  a  transverse  rib.  It  is  for  casting  celts 
about  4£  inches  long,  and  of  the  ordinary  form. 

Another  mould,  for  celts  with  an  octagonal  neck,  was  found  on  the 
Quantock  Hills,  J  Somersetshire  (and  not  in  Yorkshire),  and  is  now  in 
the  British  Museum.  The  halves  are  adjusted  to  each  other  by  a  rib  and 
groove,  as  on  that  last  mentioned,  and  the  back  is  ornamented  with  a 
peculiar  raised  figure  with  three  vertical  lines  and  a  straight  transverse 
line  at  the  top,  and  two  lines  at  the  bottom  running  up  to  the  central 
vertical  line  so  as  to  form  on  each  side  of  it  an  angle  of  about  120°. 
At  the  junction  there  is  a  ring  ornament,  and  two  others  near  the  angles 
formed  with  the  side  lines.  This  mould  has  a  transverse  hole  at  the  top 
like  that  in  the  gouge-mould  already  mentioned. 

Another  mould,  also  in  the  British  Museum,  §  is  for  celts  with  three 
vertical  ribs  on  the  face.  This  likewise  has  a  transverse  and  nearly  square 
hole  at  the  top,  and  also  recesses  in  each  half -mould,  so  as  to  give  four 
points  of  support  to  the  core  between  which  the  channels  for  the  runners 
might  be  cut.  On  the  outside,  near  the  top,  is  a  loop,  and  near  the 
bottom  two  projecting  pins  to  retain  the  string.  This  appears  to  be  the 
mould  from  Yorkshire  belonging  to  Mr.  Warburton,  figured  by  Stukeley.|| 

The  half  of  another  mould  for  celts,  of  nearly  the  same  character,  was 
found  in  the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,^f  already  so  often  mentioned,  and  is 
shown  in  Fig.  533,  for  the  use  of  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  of 
the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 

Another  mould  was  found  in  the  fen  at  Washingborough,**near  Lincoln. 
Another,  from  Cleveland,  ff  found  with  chisels,  gouges,  &c.,  is  in  the 
Bateman  Collection. 

A  part  of  another  was  found  in  a  hoard  at  Beddington,  Surrey,  JJ  and  a 

*  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  171  ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xx.  p.  192. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xxii.  p.  424 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  387  ;  "  Arch.  Inst.,"  Norwich  vol., 
p.  xxvi.  I  have  assumed  that  the  mould  described  in  these  passages  is  one  and  the 
same. 

I  Arch.,  vol.  v.  pi.  vii. ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  p.  336,  pi.  iii.  5,  6,  7,  8. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  iv.  pi.  ii.  5,  6,  7,  8.  ||  "Itin.  Cur.,"  pi.  xcvi.,  2nd  ed. 

H  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132 ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  358. 

**  Arch.  Joivrn.,  vol.  xviii.  p.  166.  ft  Ibid. 

%\  "  Surrey  Arch.  Soc.  Coll.,"  vol.  vi. 


448       METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD    OF    MANUFACTURE.       [cHAP.  XXI. 

fragment  of  another  at  "Wickham  Park,  Croydon.  This  latter  is  now  in 
the  British  Museum. 

A  bronze  mould  for  socketed  celts,  found  at  Eikrath,  was  in  the  collection 
of  the  late  Dr.  Hugo  Garthe,  of  Cologne.  Upon  the  outside  there  are 
six  ribs  with  ring  ornaments  at  the  ends,  diverging  from  a  loop  in  the 
centre. 

A  bronze  mould  for  socketed  celts,  ornamented  with  V-shaped  lines,  and 
found  at  Gnadenfeld,*  in  Upper  Silesia,  is  in  the  Berlin  Museum. 

Another  bronze  mould  with  an  external  loop,  also  for  socketed  celts,  was 
found  in  Gotland,!  and  is  in  the  Stockholm  Museum. 

A  magnificent  mould  for  socketed  celts  was  found  in  the  Cotentin  J  in 
1827.     It  has  broad  loops  outside  either  half,  with  three  processes  from 
it  running  up  and  down  the  mould. 

A  bronze  mould  for  spear-heads  was  ex- 
hibited in  Paris  in  1878.  A  part  of  another 
was  in  the  Larnaud  hoard,  and  is  now  in 
the  museum  at  St.  Germain. 

There  were  some  fragments  of  bronze 
moulds  in  the  great  Bologna  hoard. 

The  process  of  casting  bronze  instru- 
ments in  loam,  clay,  or  sand  must  have 
been  much  the  same  as  that  in  use  at 
the  present  day  ;  but  it  was  very  rarely 
that  the  mould  consisted  of  more  or 
less  than  two  pieces.  On  a  great  many 
bronze  instruments  the  joint  of  the 
mould  is  still  visible;  and  in  some  of 
the  large  hoards,  such  as  those  which 
have  been  found  in  the  North  of  France, 

Fig.  533.— Heathery  Burn.    $  . 

we  see  the  castings  just  as  they  came 

from  the  moulds,  except  that  the  runners  have  been  broken  off. 
For  socketed  celts  there  were  usually  two  runners  of  metal ;  for 
palstaves  sometimes  two,  and  sometimes  only  one  nearly  the  full 
width  of  the  upper  part.  It  is  not  uncommon  to  find  castings 
which  show  that  the  two  halves  of  the  mould  or  the  flasks  have 
slipped  sideways,  so  that  they  were  not  in  proper  position  when 
the  casting  was  made. 

I  have  a  palstave  from  a  large  hoard  found  near  Tours,  in  which 
the  lateral  displacement  of  the  mould  is  as  much  as  a  quarter  of  an 
inch,  so  that  there  is  what  geologists  might  term  a  "  fault "  in  the 
casting.  The  metal  which  has  been  in  contact  with  what  was  the 
face  of  the  mould  is  smooth,  and  appears  to  have  been  cast  against 

*  Bastian  und  A.  Voss,  "  Die  Bronze-schwerter  des  K.  Mus.,"  p.  76. 
t  Ulfsparre,  "Svenska  Fornsaker,"  pi.  viii.  93. 
I  Mem.  Soe.  Ant.  Norm.,  1827-8,  pi.  xviii. 


MOULDS    FORMED    OF    BURNT   CLAY.  449 

clay.  A  considerable  variety  of  patterns  was  in  use  by  the  founder 
to  whom  this  hoard  belonged,  and  they  appear  to  have  been  of 
metal  and  not  of  wood,  some  of  the  palstaves  having  been  appa- 
rently cast  from  tools  already  shortened  by  wear. 

That  castings  were  occasionally  made  even  from  tools  already 
mounted  in  their  handles  is  proved  by  the  Swiss  hatchet, 
Fig.  185. 

Some  portions  of  moulds  formed  of  burnt  clay  were  found 
with  broken  palstaves,  socketed  celts,  gouges,  knives,  spear-heads, 
daggers,  swords,  lumps  of  metal,  runners,  &c.,  at  Questembert. 
Brittany,  and  are  in  the  museum  at  Vannes. 

Part  of  a  mould  for  spear-heads  formed  of  burnt  clay  was  found 
in  the  Lac  du  Bourget  ;*  but  the  most  interesting  discoveries  are 
those  which  have  been  made  by  Dr.  V.  Gross  at  the  station  of 
Mcerigen,f  on  the  Lake  of  Bienne.  He  there  found  a  considerable 
amount  of  the  plant  of  an  ancient  bronze-founder,  all  of  whose 
moulds,  however,  were  either  in  stone  or  burnt  clay,  and  not 
formed  of  metal.  The  stone  moulds  appear  to  have  been  princi- 
pally used  for  the  plainer  articles,  such  as  knives,  sickles,  pins,  &c., 
while  for  articles  with  irregular  surfaces,  or  requiring  cores,  clay 
was  preferred.  Of  clay  moulds  Dr.  Gross  recognises  two  types  : 
one  formed  in  a  single  piece,  which  could  serve  but  once,  and  which 
was  broken  in  extracting  the  casting ;  and  the  other,  which  was 
composed  of  two  or  more  pieces,  and  which  could  be  used  over  and 
over  again.  Of  the  first  kind  there  were  two  examples — one  for  a 
socketed  chisel  and  the  other  for  a  socketed  knife.  The  form  of 
the  mould  for  a  chisel  is  nearly  cylindrical,  with  a  funnel-shaped 
opening  at  one  end,  at  the  bottom  of  which  are  two  holes  leading 
into  the  interior  of  the  mould.  The  clay  between  these  two  holes 
forms  part  of  a  conical  core.  Such  a  mould  would  give  the  idea 
of  its  having  been  formed  on  a  model  of  wax  on  the  system  known 
as  that  of  cire  perdue ;  but  this  appears  not  to  have  been  really 
the  case,  for  on  examination  the  mould  itself  appears  to  have  been 
originally  formed  of  two  halves,  or  valves,  formed  of  fine  clay, 
which  had  been  well  burnt,  and  these  when  put  together  had  been 
surrounded  by  an  external  envelope  of  coarse  clay,  which  held 
them  and  the  core  they  enclosed  in  their  proper  position.  The 
core  itself  seems  to  have  been  T-shaped,  the  ends  of  the  transverse 
line  being  triangular  and  fitting  into  corresponding  recesses  in  the 
valves  of  the  mould. 

*  Chantre,  "  Alb.,"  pi.  liv.  5.  t  Keller,  7ter  Bericht,  p.  16,  Taf.  xvii. 

G  G 


450    METAL,  MOULDS,  AND  METHOD  OF  MANUFACTURE.   [CHAP.  XXI. 

The  best-preserved  mould  of  the  second  kind  was  one  for  a 
socketed  hammer,  which  was  also  provided  with  a  core  of  the  same 
kind.  It  seems  to  me,  however,  that  the  distinction  drawn  by 
Dr.  Gross  between  the  two  classes  of  moulds  does  not  really  exist, 
as  by  enveloping  such  a  mould  as  that  for  the  hammer  in  a 
mass  of  clay  it  would  be  transferred  from  the  second  class  to 
the  first. 

Clay  moulds  for  socketed- celts  have  been  found  in  Hungary.* 

In  some  Scandinavian  examples!  of  what  appear  to  have  been 
ceremonial  axes  there  is  merely  a  thin  coating  of  bronze  cast  over  a 
clay  core,  but  no  such  specimens  have  as  yet  been  found  in  Britain. 
That  bronze  so  thin  could  have  been  cast  shows  wonderful  skill 
in  the  founder. 

The  heads  and  runners,  jets  or  waste  pieces,  from  the  castings 
were  reserved  for  being  re-melted,  and  are  frequently  found  in  the 


Fig.  534.—  Stogursey.    J  Fig.  535.—  Stogursey. 


bronze-founders'  hoards.  They  are  of  course  of  various  sizes, 
but  are  usually  conical  masses,  showing  the  shape  of  the  cup  or 
funnel  into  which  the  metal  was  poured,  and  having  one,  two,  or 
more  processes  from  them  showing  the  course  of  the  metal  into 
the  mould. 

Figs.  534,  535  and  536,  all  from  the  same  hoard,  found  at  Stogursey,  + 
Somersetshire,  will  give  a  fair  idea  of  the  general  character  of  these 
waste  pieces,  or  jets.  They  are  shown  with  their  flat  face  downwards, 
or  in  the  reverse  position  to  what  they  occupied  when  in  the  molten  state, 
and  exhibit  one,  two,  and  four  runners  from  them  respectively.  No  less 
than  fifteen  of  these  objects  were  found  with  this  deposit  —  six  with  one 
runner,  three  with  two,  and  six  with  four. 

Jets  of  metal,  for  the  most  part  with  two  runners,  were  found  with  the 
Westow  hoard,  §  Yorkshire,  those  of  MardenJ  Kent;  of  Kensington  ;  ^[ 

*  "  Materiaux,"  vol.  xii.  p.  184, 

t  "  Aarbogerfor  Nord.  Oldk.,"  1866,  p,  124. 

J  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  409. 

§  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p.  382;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  iii.  pp.  10  and  58. 

iArch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  258. 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  232. 


JETS   OR   WASTE    PIECES   OF    METAL.  451 

aud  of  Hounslow.     Those  from  the  two  latter  deposits  are  in  the  British 
Museum. 

Another  waste  piece,  If  inch  long,  with  two  runners,  was  found  in 
the  Heathery  Burn  Cave,*  and  is  shown  in  Fig.  537. 

A  very  symmetrical  jet,  circular,  with  four  irregularly  conical  runners 
proceeding  from  it,  was  in  the  hoard  found  at  Lanant,f  Cornwall,  and  is 
now  in  the  Museum  of  the  Society  of  Antiquaries. 

Another  oval  head  (2  inches  long),  with  four  runners  from  it,  has  much 
the  appearance  of  a  sword  pommel.  It  was  found  with  socketed 
celts  on  Kenidjack  Cliff,  ^  Cornwall. 

A  perforated  disc,  with  a  collar  round  the  central  hole  (Fig.  503), 
which  at  one  time  §  I  regarded  as  a  waste  piece  from  a  casting,  I  have 
now  reason  to  think  was  prepared  for  some  special 
purpose,  as  at  least  one  object  of  this  class  has  been 
found  with  the  runners  removed,  and  in  a  finished 
condition.  See  page  403. 

The  conical  lump  of  metal  found  with  the  hoard 
at  Marden, ||  Kent,  and  described  as  "a  very  rare 
species  of  fibula,"  may  be  the  head  of  metal  from 
a  casting. 

Some  conical  funnels  of  burnt  clay,  found  in  the 

Lake -dwellings  near  Laibach,  have  been  regarded  as  having  served  to 
receive  the  metal  in  the  casting  process. 

Runners  of  the  same  character  as  those  already  described  have  been 
found  in  different  countries,  including  Denmark^}  and  Sweden.** 

We  must  now  briefly  consider  the  processes  to  which  the  cast- 
ings were  subjected  before  being  finally  brought  into  use.  Where 
the  objects  had  sockets  cast  over  clay  cores,  those  cores  had  to  be 
removed,  probably  by  means  of  pointed  tools,  such  as  that  already 
described  under  Fig.  220.  Where  they  were  solid  they  seem  in 
most  cases  to  have  undergone  a  considerable  amount  of  hammering, 
which  both  rendered  the  metal  more  compact,  and  to  a  certain 
extent  removed  the  asperities  resulting  from  the  joints  in  the 
mould.  With  edged  tools  and  weapons,  whether  socketed  or  not, 
the  edges  especially  were  drawn  down  by  means  of  the  hammer. 

These  hammers,  as  has  already  been  shown,  were  occasionally 
themselves  of  bronze,  and  so  also  were  some  of  the  anvils.  It  is, 
however,  probable  that  in  most  cases  both  hammers  and  anvils  were 
stones,  either  natural  pebbles  and  flat  slabs,  or  occasionally  wrought 
into  special  shapes.  In  South  Africa  at  the  present  day  the  iron 
assegais  are  wrought  with  hammers  and  anvils  of  stone.  Judging 
from  the  unfinished  condition  of  the  tools  and  weapons  in  some 

*  Proe.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  132.  I  am  indebted  to  the  Council  for  the  use  of 
this  cut ;  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p.  358. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  118,  pi.  ii.  J  Journ.  Soy.  Inst.  of  Cornwall,  No.  xxi.  fig.  4. 

§"  Petit  Album,"  pi.  xxv.  6.  ||  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  260. 

If  Worsaae,  "  Nord.  Olds.,"  figs.  213,  214.      **  Montelius,  "  La  Suede  preh.,"  fig.  40. 
G  G  2 


452         METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF   MANUFACTURE.      [CHAP.  XXI. 

of  the  old  bronze-founders'  hoards,  and  from  large  deposits  of 
socketed  celts  having  been  found  with  the  clay  cores  still  in  them, 
it  seems  not  improbable  that  the  founders  often  bartered  away 
their  castings  nearly  in  the  state  in  which  they  came  from  the 
moulds,  with  only  the  runners  broken  oft",  and  that  those  who 
acquired  them  finished  their  manufacture  themselves.  Possibly  a 
hammering  process  upon  the  surface  of  the  socketed  spear-heads 
and  celts  would  so  loosen  the  cores  that  they  would  fall  out  or 
could  be  extracted  with  merely  a  pointed  stick. 

After  the  hammering,  the  surface  of  most  weapons  and  of  some 
tools  was  further  polished,  probably  by  friction  with  sand,  or  with 
a  rubbing-stone  of  grit.  I  have  elsewhere  described  some  of  the 
stone  rubbers  which  appear  to  have  been  in  use  in  conjunction 
with  sand,  for  the  purpose  of  grinding  and  polishing  the  faces  of 
different  forms  of  perforated  stone  axes,  which  in  Britain  at  all 


Fig.  538.— Kirby  Moorside.        i  Fig.  539.— Hove. 


events  belonged  to  the  period  when  bronze  was  known.  It  is, 
therefore,  probable  that  similar  rubbers  were  employed  for  grind- 
ing and  polishing  the  faces  of  bronze  weapons  ;  and  the  rubber 
shown  in  Fig.  538  appears  to  have  been  destined  for  this  purpose. 
It  was  found  with  several  socketed  celts  at  Keldholm,  near  Kirby 
Moorside,  North  Riding  of  Yorkshire,  and  is  now  in  Canon  Green- 
well's  collection.  The  material  seems  to  be  trap. 

No  doubt  many  other  such  rubbing-stones  must  exist,  and  it  is 
possible  that  some  of  those  which  I  have  regarded  as  used  for  the 
grinding  and  polishing  of  weapons  of  stone  may  have  served  for 
those  of  bronze.  Whetstones  of  various  kinds  have  from  time  to 
time  been  discovered  in  company  with  bronze  instruments.  Near 
Little  Wenlock,*  Staffordshire,  some  spear-heads,  a  socketed  celt,  and 
part  of  a  dagger  were  found  in  1835,  and  with  them  are  recorded 
to  have  been  three  or  four  small  whetstones.  In  the  Dowris 
hoard  f  also  some  rubbers  of  stone  with  convex,  concave,  and 

*  Hartshorne's  "  Salop.  Ant.,"  p.  95.  f  Proc.  R.  1.  Acad.,  vol.  iv.  p.  439. 


RUBBERS    AND    WHETSTONES.  453 

flat  surfaces  were  present.  In  my  "Ancient  Stone  Implements"* 
I  have  given  an  account  of  a  number  of  whetstones  found  at 
various  places  in  company  with  bronze  relics,  not  unfrequently 
with  interments  in  barrows,  and  I  need  not  here  repeat  the 
details.  I  reproduce,  however,  in  Fig.  539  a  whetstone  found 
in  a  barrow  at  Hove,  near  Brighton,!  with  the  remains  of  a 
skeleton,  a  stone  axe-head,  an  amber  cup,  and  a  small  bronze 
dagger. 

Another  whetstone,  shown  in  Fig.  540,  was  found  with  the 
hoard  in  the  Isle  of  Harty,  and  no  doubt  was  employed  by  the 
ancient  bronze-founder  for  finishing  off  the  edges  of  the  socketed 
celts  and  gouges  in  which  he  dealt.  It  is  made  from  a  sort  of 
ragstone. 

The  decoration  of  the  surfaces  of  bronze  implements  by  sunk,  and 
in  some  cases  by  raised  lines  appears  to  have  been 
effected,  not  as  a  rule  by  any  method  of  engraving, 
but  by  means  of  punches,  as  already  described  in 
Chapter  III.  I  have  in  that  chapter  accidentally 
omitted  to  mention  two  decorated  bronze  celts  which 
have  been  figured  and  described  by  Mr.  Llewellynn 
Jewitt,  F.S.A.+  They  were  both  found  at  a  place  called 
Highlow,  in  the  High  Peak  of  Derbyshire,  about  two 
miles  from  Hathersage,  and  are  in  the  possession  of  the 
Duke  of  Devonshire.  There  seems  some  reason  to 
believe  §  that  the  celts  were  found  in  a  barrow  accom- 
panied by  burnt  bones  and  pottery.  One  of  them 
(6f  inches)  is  flat  and  ornamented  with  lines  of  slightly 
impressed  chevrons  running  along  it.  The  other  (6£ 
inches)  is  flanged  and  ornamented  with  a  similar  herring-  ^|-rg°-  ^ 
bone  pattern,  which  in  this  instance  ends  in  a  row  of 
triangles  near  the  edge  of  the  celt.  In  some  few  cases  the  patterns 
may  have  been  engraved,  and  I  find  on  trial  that  there  is  no  diffi- 
culty in  engraving  such  parallel  lines  as  are  frequently  seen  on 
dagger  blades  by  means  of  a  flake  of  flint.  Such  an  instrument 
suffers  but  little  by  wear,  and  by  means  of  a  ruler,  either  straight 
or  curved,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  engraving  lines  of  the  required 
character  in  the  bronze,  though  the  lines  are  hardly  so  smooth  as 
if  made  with  a  chisel-edged  punch. 

*  Chap.  xi.  p.  235  et  seqq. 

t  Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  ix.  p.  120,  whence  this  cut  is  borrowed;  Arch.  Journ., 
vol.  xiii.  p.  184,  vol.  xv.  p.  90.  J  "  Reliquary,"  vol.  iv.  p.  63. 

§  Pennington,  "  Barrows  and  Bone  Caves  of  Derbyshire,"  1877,  p.  51. 


454        METAL,    MOULDS,    AND   METHOD   OF   MANUFACTURE.      [CHAP.  XXI. 

Notches  which  would  assist  in  the  breaking  off  of  superfluous 
pieces  of  metal,  such  as  the  runners  in  the  moulds,  can  readily  be 
made  with  flint  flakes  used  as  saws. 

For  smoothing  the  surface  of  bronze  instruments  flint  scraping- 
tools  are  not  so  efficient,  as  they  are  liable  to  "  chatter  "  and  to 
leave  an  uneven  and  scratched  surface,  much  inferior  to  one 
produced  by  friction  with  a  gritty  rubber. 

There  remains  little  more  to  be  said  with  regard  to  the  manu- 
facture of  the  ancient  bronze  tools  and  weapons.  It  may,  however,  be 
observed  that  the  processes  of  hammering-out  and  sharpening  the 
edges  were  employed  not  only  by  those  who  first  made  the  instru- 
ments, but  also  by  the  subsequent  possessors.  Many  tools,  such 
for  instance  as  palstaves,  like  Fig.  65,  were  no  doubt  originally 
much  longer  in  the  blade  than  they  are  at  present,  and  have  in 
the  course  of  use  either  been  broken  and  again  drawn  down  and 
sharpened,  or  have  been  actually  worn  away  and  "  stumped  up  " 
by  constant  repetition  of  these  processes.  The  recurved  ends  of 
the  lunate  cutting  edges  of  many  such  instruments  are  also  due  to 
repeated  hammering-out.  In  some  instances  the  broken  part  of 
one  instrument  has  been  converted  into  another  form — as,  for 
example,  a  fragment  of  a  broken  sword  into  a  knife  or  dagger, 
or  a  palstave  that  has  lost  its  cutting  end,  into  a  hammer. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

CHRONOLOGY   AND    ORIGIN    OF   BRONZE. 

HAVING  now  passed  in  revieAv  the  various  forms  of  instruments, 
arms,  and  ornaments  belonging  to  the  Bronze  Period  of  Great 
Britain,  it  will  be  well  to  attempt  some  chronological  arrangement 
of  the  different  types,  and  to  examine  the  means  at  our  command 
for  fixing  the  approximate  date  and  duration  of  the  Period  as  well 
as  the  sources  from  which  the  knowledge  of  bronze  in  this  country 
was  derived. 

The  sequence  and  extent  of  variation  in  the  types  of  an 
instrument  or  weapon  destined  to  serve  some  given  purpose  are 
of  course  important  factors  in  any  theoretical  calculation  of  the 
length  of  time  such  an  instrument  was  in  use.  For  if  the  type 
has  remained  one  and  the  same  during  the  whole  period  of  the 
use  of  the  instrument,  it  affords  no  evidence  as  to  the  length  of 
its  duration  ;  whereas,  if  it  has  varied,  and  the  sequence  of  its 
variations  can  be  traced,  their  nature  and  extent  may  afford  some 
means  of  judging  of  the  length  of  time  probably  necessary  for  the 
development  of  the  succession  of  forms.  Or  where  an  instrument 
has  been  so  well  adapted  for  its  particular  ends  that  no  material 
modification  in  its  form  was  likely  to  take  place  in  it,  so  long  as 
its  use  was  limited  to  its  original  purpose,  yet  the  springing  from 
it  of  what  may  be  termed  collateral  types  of  instruments  specialized 
for  other  though  analogous  purposes  may  also  be  indicative  of  the 
original  form  having  remained  in  use  during  a  lengthened  period 
of  time. 

The  extremely  numerous  variations  which  may  be  observed  in 
socketed  celts  afford  conclusive  evidence  of  that  instrument  having 
been  employed  in  this  country  during  a  long  series  of  years  ;  and 
the  collateral  varieties,  such  as  socketed  chisels  and  gouges,  as  well 
as  the  more  distantly  related  socketed  hammers,  give  corroborative 
testimony  to  the  same  effect. 


456  CHRONOLOGY   AND    ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.  XXII. 

Improvements  in  the  method  of  working  metals  will  often  react 
on  the  forms  of  tools  and  weapons,  but  here  again  the  chrono- 
logical element  exists,  as  old  processes  and  old  forms  are  slow  to 
die,  especially  among  a  people  of  no  very  high  material  civilisation. 
The  discovery,  for  instance,  of  the  art  of  producing  hollow  sockets 
in  bronze  castings  by  the  use  of  cores  of  loam  or  clay,  though  it 
materially  modified  the  form  of  many  instruments,  did  not  cause 
the  entire  extinction  of  the  older  forms  without  sockets,  the  use 
of  which  in  some  cases  went  on  side  by  side  with  that  of  the  instru- 
ments of  more  novel  invention  ;  and  this  fact  tends  to  prove  that 
bronze  must  have  long  been  in  use  for  tools  with  tangs  instead  of 
sockets,  before  the  process  of  coring  was  known.  Indeed,  as  I 
have  elsewhere*  pointed  out,  the  Bronze  Period  of  Britain  is 
susceptible  of  division  into  an  earlier  and  later  stage,  the  former 
mainly  characterized  by  instruments  which  were  let  into  their 
hafts  or  handles,  and  the  latter  by  those  which  received  their 
handles  in  sockets.  As  will  subsequently  be  seen,  it  may  be 
divided  even  into  three  more  or  less  distinct  stages. 

A  division  into  two  stages  has  been  suggested  for  the  Scandinavian 
Bronze  Age.  M.  Gabriel  de  Mortillet  has  in  like  manner  divided  the 
Bronze  Period  of  France  and  Switzerland  into  an  earlier  and  later 
stage — the  one  distinguished  by  flanged  celts,  which  came  into 
use  at  the  close  of  the  Stone  Period  (his  Epoque  robenhausienne), 
and  the  other  by  palstaves  and  socketed  celts,  which  he  regards  as 
belonging  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period.  To  these  two  stages 
he  has  applied  the  terms  morgien  and  larnaudien,  derived  from 
the  Lake-dwelling  of  Merges,  in  the  Lake  of  Geneva,  and  from 
the  large  founder's  hoard  discovered  at  Larnaud  (Jura).  Curiously 
enough  he  regards  the  flat  celts  as  being  even  more  recent  in  date 
than  the  socketed,  forgetful  that  the  form  with  flanges  at  the  sides 
can  hardly  by  any  possibility  have  been  an  original  type,  as  such 
flanges  must  either  have  been  produced  by  hammering  the  sides 
of  flat  celts,  or  must  have  been  cast  hi  a  mould  consisting  of  two 
halves,  which  certainly  cannot  have  been  so  early  a  form  of  mould 
as  a  simple  recess  in  stone,  sand,  or  clay,  adapted  for  casting  a 
nearly  flat  plate  of  metal  like  a  wedge-shaped  celt. 

Such  flat  celts,  as  has  already  been  mentioned,  have  been  found 
with  interments  in  barrows  associated  with  what  were  apparently 
lance-heads  of  flint,  and  maces  and  battle-axes  of  stone  ;  and  their 
nearest  allies,  those  with  but  slight  flanges — the  result  of  ham- 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p.  412. 


PROPOSED   DIVISION   OF   THE    BRONZE    PERIOD.  457 

mering  the  sides — have  also  been  found  under  similar  circum- 
stances. 

The  knife-daggers,  as  described  in  Chapter  X.,  and  the  awls  or 
prickers,  are  the  only  other  bronze  instruments  which  in  this 
country  can  challenge  a  similar  antiquity ;  and  none  of  these,  as  a 
rule,  are  found  in  those  deposits  of  bronze  objects  to  which  the 
name  of  "  hoards  "  has  been  given. 

As  M.  Gabriel  de  Mortillet  and  others  have  pointed  out,  these 
hoards  are  of  more  than  one  character.  In  certain  cases  they  seem 
to  have  been  the  treasured  property  of  some  individual  who  would 
appear  to  have  buried  his  valued  tools  or  weapons  during  troublous 
times,  and  never  to  have  been  able  to  disinter  them.  In  other 
cases  the  hoards  were  probably  the  property  of  a  trader,  as  they 
consist  of  objects  ready  for  use  and  in  considerable  numbers  ;  and 
in  others,  again,  they  appear  to  have  been  the  stock-in-trade  of 
some  bronze-founder  of  ancient  times,  as  they  comprise  worn  out 
and  broken  tools  and  weapons,  lumps  of  rough  metal,  and  even 
the  moulds  in  which  the  accumulation  of  bronze  was  destined  to 
be  recast. 

Mr.  Worsaae  has  suggested  that  some  of  these  hoards  may  be  of 
a  votive  character  and  have  been  deposited  in  the  ground  as 
precious  offerings  to  the  gods.  I  am  not,  however,  aware  of  any 
of  our  British  hoards  being  of  such  a  character  that  they  can  safely 
be  regarded  as  votive. 

As  to  the  other  three  kinds  of  hoards,  the  small  group  from 
Wallingford*  (No.  60  in  the  following  table),  consisting  of  a  socketed 
celt,  gouge,  and  knife,  and  a  tanged  chisel  and  razor,  may  be  taken 
as  a  good  instance  of  a  private  deposit.  That  of  Stibbard  t  (No.  8), 
consisting  of  seventy  palstaves  and  ten  spear-heads,  some  of 
them  rough  from  the  mould,  would  appear  to  have  belonged  to  a 
merchant  ;  and  the  Harty  hoard  (No.  105),  described  in  the  last 
chapter,  affords  a  typical  example  of  the  stock-in-trade  of  a  bronze- 
founder. 

In  some  other  cases,  deposits,  especially  when  consisting  exclu- 
sively of  ornaments,  may  possibly  be  of  a  sepulchral  character. 

The  value  of  the  evidence  afforded  by  hoards,  especially  by 
those  of  the  first  and  second  kinds  lately  mentioned,  is  great  and 
unquestionable  in  determining  the  synchronism  of  various  forms  of 
instruments — as,  for  instance,  of  plain  and  looped  palstaves  with 
socketed  celts.  In  the  case  of  the  bronze-founders'  hoards  of 

*  Page  128.  t  Page  84. 


458  CHRONOLOGY    AND   ORIGIN    OF   BRONZE.        [CHAP.  XXII. 

old  metal,  it  is  of  course  possible  that  the  fragments  contained  may 
belong  to  various  periods.  Nevertheless  the  objects,  as  a  rule, 
appear  to  be  such  as  were  in  use  at  the  time,  and  which,  being 
worn  out  or  broken,  were  collected  by  the  bronze-founder  for  the 
purpose  of  re-melting.  In  order  to  make  them  at  once  more 
portable  and  more  ready  for  placing  in  the  crucible,  he  generally 
broke  the  larger  and  longer  articles  into  fragments,  broken  spear- 
heads, swords,  &c.,  being  frequently  present  in  the  hoards,  as  well 
as  the  jets  or  waste  pieces  of  metal  broken  off  from  castings.  In  some 
instances  fragments  of  various  instruments  have  been  inserted  in  the 
sockets  of  others,  so  as  to  diminish  the  space  occupied  by  the  whole. 

As  will  subsequently  be  seen,  by  far  the  greater  number  of  the 
undoubted  bronze-founders'  hoards  belong  to  a  time  when  socketed 
celts  were  already  in  use,  and  therefore  to  the  close  rather  than  the 
beginning  of  our  Bronze  Period. 

M.  Ernest  Chantre  has  divided  the  principal  hoards  of  the 
Bronze  Age  discovered  in  France  into  three  principal  categories,  to 
which  he  has  applied  the  terms  "  Tresors,"  "  Fonderies,"  and 
"Stations."  The  first,  as  a  rule,  comprise  articles  which  have 
never  been  in  use,  and  are,  in  fact,  of  the  same  character  as  the 
hoards  which  I  have  classed  under  the  head  of  "Personal"  or 
"Merchants."  The  principal  tresors,  those  of  Rdallon,  Ribiers, 
Beaurieres,  Manson,  Frouard,  are  characterized  by  the  presence 
of  socketed  instruments  ;  and  in  two  instances — those  of  La  Fertd- 
Hauterive,  and  Vaudrevanges,  Rhenish  Prussia — either  an  ingot 
or  a  mould  of  metal  was  present.  I  should,  therefore,  have 
classed  these  two  among  the  "  fonderies." 

M.  Chantre  has,  however,  in  the  main,  restricted  this  term 
to  hoards  consisting  principally  of  broken  objects,  and  of  these 
fonderies  he  has  examined  some  fifty  in  France.  In  the  southern 
part  of  that  country  these  hoards  are  by  no  means  so  constantly 
characterized  by  the  presence  of  socketed  celts  and  other  socketed 
instruments  as  in  Britain.  In  the  north  of  France,  however,  the 
socketed  forms  are  more  frequent  in  the  hoards. 

The  stations  are  considered  to  represent  habitations  of  the 
Bronze  Age  of  the  same  character  as  the  Lake-dwellings,  but  fixed  on 
terra  firma  instead  of  on  piles  or  artificial  islands.  Some  of  the 
hoards  placed  under  this  head  appear  from  the  presence  of  moulds 
and  lumps  of  metal  to  be  those  of  founders. 

Hoards  of  broken  objects  of  bronze  have  been  found  in  other 
parts  of  Europe,  but  it  seems  needless  to  do  more  than  mention 


DIFFERENT    KINDS   OF    HOARDS.  459 

the  fact.  I  may,  however,  refer  to  the  hoards  of  Camenz  and 
Grossenhain,  in  Saxony,*  of  which  I  gave  an  account  to  the  Society 
of  Antiquaries  some  fifteen  years  ago. 

In  the  following  lists  I  have  divided  the  principal  hoards 
discovered  in  the  United  Kingdom  into  two  main  categories,  the 
one,  in  which  socketed  celts,  gouges,  or  other  tools  were  absent ; 
the  other,  in  which  they  were  present  in  greater  or  less  abundance. 
This  is  perhaps  the  simplest  method  of  arriving  at  what  may  be 
regarded  as  a  fairly  trustworthy  chronological  division.  Some  of 
the  results  of  an  examination  of  the  lists  will  subsequently  be 
discussed.  In  the  first  list  I  have  given  the  precedence  to  those 
hoards  in  which  flat  or  flanged  celts  were  present.  Second,  I  have 
placed  those  in  which  there  were  palstaves.  Third,  those  in  which 
ornaments  were  found  ;  and  last,  those  mainly  characterized  by 
swords  and  spear-heads,  or  spear-heads  and  ferrules,  but  in  which 
both  palstaves  and  socketed  celts  were  absent. 

In  the  second  list  I  have  placed  at  the  head  the  hoards  in  which 
socketed  celts,  sometimes  accompanied  by  palstaves,  were  found 
associated  with  swords  or  spears,  while  mere  tools,  such  as  gouges 
and  hammers,  were  absent.  Next  come  a  few  cases  in  which 
socketed  celts  occurred  either  in  company  with  ornaments  or  alone. 
Then  follow  the  hoards  in  which  chisels,  gouges,  or  hammers  were 
found,  but  no  lumps  of  metal  were  present.  After  these  are 
placed  the  bronze-founders'  hoards,  in  which  lumps  of  metal  and 
the  jets  or  waste  pieces  from  castings  were  found,  including  one  or 
two  Scotch  and  Irish  hoards ;  and,  finally,  those  in  which  moulds 
were  present. 

In  each  case  I  have  attempted  to  distinguish  whether  a  hoard 
was  personal  or  belonged  to  a  merchant  or  founder,  by  adding  the 
letters  P,  M,  or  F.  Where  two  of  these  letters  occur,  the  hoard 
seems  to  come  under  either  category.  It  is  possible  that  some  of 
those  characterized  by  a  P  may  be  sepulchral. 

Appended  to  the  tabulated  lists  is  a  more  detailed  account, 
mentioning  some  of  the  principal  features  in  each  case,  and  giving 
references  to  the  works  in  which  the  discoveries  are  recorded.  Of 
course  this  is  to  a  great  extent  a  repetition  of  what  has  been 
recorded  in  previous  pages.  It  must  be  observed  that  the  num- 
bers given  in  the  lists  do  not  always  refer  to  entire  objects  but 
frequently  to  fragments  only.  Where  the  numbers  are  unknown 
the  presence  of  the  objects  is  shown  by  an  x. 

*  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  iii.  p.  328, 


460 


CHRONOLOGY    AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 


METAL 


!      1 


MM 


I  1  IS 


JETS 


I  1  1  1  1  1 


M 


MOULDS 


MM 


i  i| 


MISCELLAN. 


1  1  1  1  1  1 


1  1  l~ 


CALDRONS 


1  1  1  1  1  1  1 


MM 


II  1   1  Mo 


RINGS 


i  i 


1       1       | 


I  II  II  1  l« 


CLASPS 


i  i 


1       1 


1  1  1  II  1 


BUTTONS 


i  i 


1       I       1 


1  1  1 


BRACELETS 


1  II  1 


1  1  II  M  1 


TORQUES 


I  1 


II  IH 


PINS 


1  1  1  1  1 


1  1  1 


1  1  ~~s*  III* 


TRUMPETS 


i  i 


M 


FERRULES 


-<N^     |      |      |      | 


SPEAR-HEADS 


i  i 


-~S  \   \ 


TANGED  SP. 


1  1  !  1  1 


I  I  I  II  I  I  II  I  I  II  I  II 


SCABBARDS 


1     1 


1  1  1  1  1 


I*"" 


SWORDS 


1  1  1  1 


RAPIERS 


i      \\\ 


1    1 


1    1 


|« 


DAGGERS 


~  1  1  1  1  1 


I  1  1 


1    1    1    1    1    II    1    l« 


HALBERDS 


1  1 


1    1   II   1   II   IW 


RAZORS 


1  1  1  II  1 


1  I 


M 


KNIVES 


1  1  II  1  1 


1  1 


1    1    II    1    II    1   IM 


SICKLES 


1  1 


1    II 


I    I 


HAMMERS 


I  1  1 


IW 


AWLS 


1  1  I  1  1 


1  1 


M 


GOUGES 


II  1  1  1 


1  1  1 


CHISELS 


1  1 


II  II  II  1  113 


SOCK.  CELTS 


I  I  II  I    I 


1  1 


PALSTAVES 


1    « 


I  1 


FLANGED  CTS. 


^2*2W  1   I   I   I   I   I   1   I 


1  1  1  1  1  I 


M  g 


a'a  .  . 


^.s  ll 


LISTS   OF    PRINCIPAL    HOARDS. 


461 


METAL 


JETS 


MOULDS 


1  1  1  I  1  1  1  1 


!  1  1  1      1  1  1  I  1  1 


II 


1  1  I  1  1 


1  1  1  1  1 


1  1  I  |  |  |  | 


MINIMA 


MINIM 


MISCELLAN. 


1  lw  1  13 


CALDRONS 


III      I 


RINGS 


11 


I  I 
I  I 


1  1  1  1 


I  II  lo 


N 


i  i  i 


CLASPS 


II      1  1  N  1  1  II 


N 


II  I 


I~S 


BUTTONS 


II      II  1  1  N 


N 


INNIN^ 


BEACELETS 


N  N  1  N 


INN 


N  ll« 


TORQUES 


111  Illlllll 


1  1  M  lw  M  1-  M  MH 


PINS 


TRUMPETS 


I  I  II  I 

INN 


1  1 


j_«  I 
I  I  I 


FERRULES 


""-""     M 


N 


1  1  1  1  1      II 


SPEAR-HEADS 


TANGED  SP. 


N 


N  II  1      II  1  II 


I  1  1  1  1  1  l£ 


SCABBARDS 


I  1 


1  II  1 


SWORDS 


|     |    |     i     |     |     |« 


RAPIERS 


1  1  1  1      1  1  N  1  1 


DAGGERS 


II  N  II 


1  1  1  1  II  N  1  II  1 


HALBERDS 


N 


II  II  II 


RAZORS 


N 


II 


I_M 

jco    | 


I  I  I  I  II  N  I  II  I  la 
I  II  II  II  II  II  I  l« 


KNIVES 


1  I 


1  1  1  1  1  M 


M  I 


N 


SICKLES 


II 


II    II   1    1   1    1    1    1    1    1    1    II    1 


l« 


HAMMERS 


II 


1    II    M    N    II    II    1    1    1    1    I 


AWLS 


II 


1  1  II  1  II  II  II  1  N 


IHLLLLL? 

M  I  III  H 


GOUGES 


III 


II  N  II  N  1      11°  |~  —  a 


CHISELS 


1  N  1  I 


I     II  1  1  II  1 


1  1  1  1  16 


SOCK.  CELTS 


PALSTAVES 


~ao-^-<  II  II  I 


I  II  1  II  II  1 


FLANGED  CTS 


N  II  II  M  II  II  1  !  1  II  1  II 


Ig 


n  e-3  «>  o>  ec  cc  cc 


462 


CHRONOLOGY   AND    ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.        [CHAP.  XXII. 


METAL 


I    I    I 


I    I 


JETS 


!   I 


I  I  I 


S  I 


IMP* 


MOULDS 


I    I 


I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I 


mil 


MISCELLAN. 
^CALDRONS" 


I  I 


MM 


I  I 


i  1 


l.iri.u  i  i-H 


I  I  I 


I  lo 


EINGS 


I  II  II  I  I 


CLASPS 
BUTTONS 


I    I    I    I 


II  II  I  I  I 


I    I 


II  II  II  i 


I    I    I 


lo 


1°   I    I 


BEACELETS 


i    I 


I    I    I 


I    I    I    I    I    I    I 


I    i 


TOEQUES 


I    I    I    I 


I    I    I    I    I    I    I 


I   I 


I    |H 


PINS 


TRUMPETS 


"MINI 


I    I 


I    I    II 


I    I    I 


JJ^ 
I  I 


FEREULES 


I    I    I    I 


I  I  I 


I    I 


I    I 


SPEAR-HEADS 


TANGED  SP. 


I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I 


I   I 


SCABBARDS 


i    j 


I   I   I  I  I   I   12-  I  I  I 


SWORDS 


I **-  I  I  I 


EAPIEES 


i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i 


i  i  i 


DAGGEES 


I    1 


I    I    I 


II  II  II 


HALBERDS 


I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I 


RAZORS 


I  I  I  I 


!   ! 


I 


!  S 


I  I  I 


KNIVES 
SICKLES 


I  ,„  , ,«~ 


II    I    I 


II  I  II  I  I  I  II 


I   ! 


*••*• 


i  i.r.i* 


HAMMERS 


I— -I  I  M  I.I  I 


^  I   I  W 


AWLS 


I  I  II  II  II  I  I  I  I 


!  ! 


GOUGES 


CHISELS 


I  I  I  I-  I 


I    I    I 


SOCK.  CELTS 


PALSTAVES 


I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I    I 


FLANGED  CTS. 


I  I  I  II  I  II  I!"  II  II  I  !  II  II  II  I 


LISTS    OF   PRINCIPAL    HOARDS. 


463 


METAL 


JETS 


MOULDS 


MISCELLAN. 


CALDRONS 


KINGS 


1  tO  -*C     H      I     CO  IN  r-l     Vi     H 


M  M  M 


I  I 


I      I 


I      I 


I  I  I  I  1  I.I  I  *  I 


I      I 


i      i 


M  M  I  I  M  M  M  M  M  I 


I  I  l~«  I 


1  I 


I  I  I  *  I  I  I  IS 


CLASPS 


-III 


BUTTONS 


-  II  II  I  II  II  I 


I    i    I 


BEACELETS 


I    I    I    I    I 


I  I 


I  I  IS 


TORQUES 


I    I 


M  I  I  I  M  I  I 


I    I 


I  I  IH 


PINS 


I  I  I  M  I  I  I*  I 


11*111 


I       |PH 


TRUMPETS 


I    I    I 


I  I  I  I  I  M  I  I 


FERRULES 


I  I 


I  I  I-  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I-  I  I"1  I  I  I* 


SPEAR-HEADS 


I  I 


I    I 


I  h-     I    (M     I    00  .-H      I       I      fc    0< 


TANGED  SP. 


I  I  I  I  I  M  I  I  M  I  I  I  I  I  I  M  I  I  I  I  M  I 


SCABBARDS 


I    | 


SWORDS 


I  M  M  M  M  I 


H     I    -I     I    CO,-. 


I"-1  I   I   In 


RAPIERS 


| 


DAGGERS 


I  1 


j_L 
I   I 


I   I 


HALBERDS 


I  M  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  M  I  I  M  M  I  II  I  M  ll« 


RAZORS 


I  I  I  I  I  I  I  M  I  M  I  I  I 


KNIVES 


I  I-M  I 


I    IM 


SICKLES 


i  ! 


^  1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1  ri°° 


HAMMERS 


I    I 


I    I    I    I    I   *   I    I    I    I 


IH 


AWLS 


I    I 


I    I 


GOUGES 


I  I  l-*~  I 


i    I 


CO      I     r-H  (M  CO  i-l      I       Vi 


CHISELS 


i i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i  i i  i  M  i  r  M  *  is 


SOCK.  CELTS 


PALSTAVES 


I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I  I**l  I  I'-S'l  I* 


FLANGED  GTS 


I    1 


I    | 


I   I   i   I   I 


60 

I 


Us    §§    =H    l.| 


I 
K 

^ 


S=  llg 

"I   frill 


464 


CHRONOLOGY   AXD   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 


LISTS  OF  HOARDS. 

LIST  I. 


.Locality. 

Remarks. 

1.  Arreton  Down,  Isle  of 

Ranged    celts,    some  ornamented, 

Wight. 

tanged   spear-heads,    ferrule    to 

one,  halberd?  one  socketed  dagger. 

2.  Plymstock,  Devon. 

Flanged  celts,  straight  chisel. 

3.  Battlefield,      Shrews- 

Mostly melted.  Flat  celts,  palstaves, 

bury. 

curved  objects. 

4.  Postlingford         Hall, 

Flanged  celts,  some  ornamented. 

Clare,  Suffolk. 

5.  Rhosnesney,      Wrex- 

Palstaves,   all    from    one    mould  ; 

ham,  Denbighshire. 

castings  for  a  dagger   and  for 
flanged  celts  of  narrow  form. 

6.  Broxton,  Cheshire. 

Tanged    chisel  ;     socketed    spear- 

head. 

7.  Sherford,       Taunton, 

One  palstave,  a  defective  casting. 

Somerset. 

8.  Stibbard,  near  Faken- 

Castings  for  small  palstaves  and 

ham,  Norfolk. 

spear-heads. 

9.  Quantock  Hills,  Som- 

Each palstave  laid  within  a  torque. 

erset. 

10.  Hollingbury         Hill, 

Palstave  laid  within  a  torque,  brace- 

Brighton, Sussex. 

lets  around. 

11.  Edington  Burtle,  Som- 
erset. 

One  casting  for  a  flat  sickle  ;  ribbed 
bracelet  and  ring. 

12.  Woolmer           Forest, 

There   appears  some  doubt   about 

Hants. 

the  small  torques. 

13.  West  Buckland,  Som- 
erset. 

Two-looped  palstave. 

14.  Blackmoor,  Hants. 

Fragments  of  swords  and  sheaths, 

large  and  small  spear-heads. 

15.  Fulbourn       Common, 

Swords  broken,  leaf-shaped  spear- 

Cambs. 

heads,  broad-ended  ferrules. 

16.  Pant-y-maen,     Cardi- 

Swords and  leaf-shaped  spear-heads, 

ganshire. 

broken  or  damaged. 

17.  Wicken  Fen,  Cambs. 

Nearly  all  fragmentary  ;  fragments 
perhaps  of  two  swords. 

18.  Corsbie  Moss,  Leger- 

Sword  perfect. 

wood,  Berwickshire. 

19.  Weymouth,  Dorset. 

Both  sword  and  spear-head  nearly 

perfect. 

20.  ThruntonFarm,Whit- 

Spear-heads,  leaf-shaped,  and  with 

tingham,    Northum- 

lunate openings  ;  all  objects  un- 

berland. 

broken. 

21.  Worth,        Washfield, 

Sword  and  leaf-shaped  spear-heads, 

Devon. 

perfect. 

Reference. 
Arch.,  vol.  xxxvi.  p.  326. 


Arch.   Journ.,    vol.    xxvi. 

p.    346;    Trans.    Devon. 

Assoc.,  vol.  iv.  p.  304. 
Proc.    Soe.   Ant.,   2nd  S., 

vol.  ii.  p.  251. 

Arch.,  vol.  xxxi.  p.  496  ; 
Proc.  Soc.Ant.,vol.  i.  p.  83. 

Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol. 
vi.  p.  72. 

Penes    Sir   P.   de  M.   G. 

Egerton,  F.R.S. 
Pring,"  British  and  Roman 

Taunton,"  p.  76. 

Arch.  Inst.,  Norwich  vol. 

p.  xxvi. 
Arch.,  vol.  xiv.  p.  94. 

Arch.    Journ.,  vol.   v.    p. 

323 ;    Arch.,  vol.    xxix. 

p.  372,  &c. 
Som.  Arch,  and  Nat.  Hist. 

Proc.,  vol.  v.  (1854)  pt. 

ii.  p.  91. 
Arch.    Assoe.   Journ,,  vol. 

vi.    p.    88;    Bateman's 

Catal.,  p.  22. 
Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii. 

p.  107. 
White's  "Selborne,"  Bell's 

ed.,  1877,  vol.  ii.  p.  381. 
Arch.,  vol.  xix.  p.  56. 

Arch.   Camb.,  3rd  S.,  vol. 

x.  p.  221. 
In  British  Museum. 

Proc.   Soc.    Ant.,  vol.   iii. 
p.  121. 

Penes  Auct. 

Proc.   Soc.   Ant.,    2nd    S., 
vol.  v.  p.  429. 

Arch.   Journ.,    vol.    xxiv. 
p.  120. 


LISTS   OF    PRINCIPAL    HOARDS. 


465 


Locality. 

22.  Stoke  Ferry,  Norfolk. 

23.  Brechin,  Forfarshire. 


24.  Duddingston 
Edinburgh. 


Loch, 


25.  Point  of  Sleat,  Isle  of 

Skye. 

26.  River  Wandle,  Surrey. 

27.  Tarves,  Aberdeenshire. 

28.  Cwm    Moch,    Maen- 

twrog,      Merioneth- 
shire. 

29.  Bloody    Pool,    South 

Brent,  Devon. 

30.  Broadward,  Leintwar- 

dine,  Herefordshire. 


Remarks. ' 

Swords    and    leaf-shaped     spear- 
heads broken,  halberd. 

Swords,  &c.,  unbroken. 


Swords,  spear-heads,  &c.,  in  frag- 
ments; caldron. 


Sword,  spear-head,  and  pin,  per- 
fect. 

All  objects  nearly  perfect. 

Objects  mostly  perfect. 

Objects  unbroken ;  loops  at  base  of 
blade  of  spear-head. 

Spear-heads  mostly  barbed;  all 
objects  broken. 

Spear-heads,  leaf-shaped,  with  per- 
forations in  blade,  and  barbed. 


Reference. 
enes    Auct. ;    Proc.   Soc. 

Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol.  v.  p. 

425. 
Arch.   Journ.,  vol.  xiii.  p. 

203;     Proc.    Soc.    Ant. 

Scot.,  vol.  i.  pp.  181  and 

224. 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol.  i. 

p.  132;  Wilson,  "Preh. 

Ann.  of  Scot.,"  vol.  i.  p. 

348. 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol. 

iii.  p.  102. 

Arch.  Journ., -vol.  ix.  p.  7. 
Horaferales,  p.  161. 
Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  365. 


Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xii.  p. 
84  ;  xviii.  p.  160. 

Arch.  Camb.,  4th  S.,  vol. 
iii.  p.  345 ;  iv.  202. 


31.  Mawgan,  Cornwall. 

32.  Wallington, Northum- 

berland. 

33.  Nottingham. 

34.  Nettleham,     Lincoln- 

shire. 
36.  Haxey,  Lincolnshire. 

36.  Ambleside,  Westmore- 

land. 

37.  Bilton,  Yorkshire. 

38.  Alnwick  Castle,  Nor- 

thumberland. 

39.  Flixborough,  Lincoln- 

shire. 

40.  Greensborough  Farm, 

Shenstone,   Stafford- 
shire. 

41.  WreMn       Tenement, 

Shrewsbury. 

42.  Llandysilio,  Denbigh- 

shire. 

43.  Dunbar,  Haddington- 

shire. 

44.  Little Wenlock,  Shrop- 

shire. 


LIST  II. 
Rapier  in  high  preservation. 


Fragments  of  swords,  and  possibly 

of  scabbard-tip. 
Socketed  celts  of  peculiar  types. 


Swords  described  as  broad-swords, 
and  sharp-pointed  swords. 

Swords  broken,  one  spear -head 
ornamented. 

Found  in  1726. 

Sword  broken.   Possibly  palstaves. 
Swords  apparently  perfect. 

One  celt,  a  few  swords,  about  150 

spear-heads  and  fragments. 
See  p.  119. 

Uninjured. 

Spear-heads  mostly  broken,  whet- 
stones with  them.  Possibly  the 
same  hoard  as  No.  41. 


Arch.,  vol.  xvii.,  p.  337. 

In  Sir  C.  Trevelyan's  Col- 
lection. 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S., 
vol.  i.  p.  332. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xviii. 
p.  159. 

Penes  Canon  Greenwell, 
F.R.S. 

Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  115. 

Arch.  Assoc.   Journ.,  vol. 

v.  p.  349. 
Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  113. 

Arch.    Journ.,   vol.   xxix. 

p.  194. 
Arch.,  vol.  xxi.  p.  548. 


Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  464. 

Penes    Canon    Greenwell, 

F.R.S. 
Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol. 

x.  p.  440. 
Hartshorne, "  Salop.  Ant.," 

p.    96  ;     Arch.    Journ., 

vol.  viii.  p.  197- 


466 


CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 


Locality.                   , 

Remarks. 

Reference. 

45.  Winmarleigh,       Gar- 
stang,  Lancashire. 

One   spear-head,  large,   and  with 
lunate  openings  ;    all  found    in 
"a  cist  or  box." 

Arch.   Journ.,    vol.    xviii. 
p.  158. 

46.  Near    Newark,    Not- 

"wo large  discs  in  hoard. 

Penes    Canon    Greenwell, 

tinghamshire. 

F.R.S. 

47.  Hagbourn  Hill,  Berks. 

Jridle-bits  and  late  Celtic  buckles, 
said  to  have  been  found;  coins 

Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  348. 

also? 

48.  Ty  Mawr,  Holyhead. 

Said  to  have  been  found  in  a  box. 

Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  483. 

49.  Heath    House,    Wed- 

Amber  beads  found  at  same  time  ; 

Arch.  Journ.  vol.  vi.  p.  81. 

more,  Somerset. 

possibly  palstaves  and  not  sock- 

eted celts. 

60.  Wymington,  Beds. 

About  sixty  celts  found. 

Specimens  penes  Auct. 

51.  Keepham,  Norfolk. 

Tound  about  1747. 

Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  114. 

52.  Yattendon,  Berks. 

Swords  in  fragments,  tanged  chisels 

Proc.   Soc.   Ant.,  2nd  S., 

and  knives,  two  socketed  knives, 

vol.  vii.  p.  480. 

fiat  celt  much  worn. 

53.  Taunton,  Somerset. 

?lat  sickles,  looped  pin. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxxvii. 

p.  94. 

54.  Beacon    Hill,  Cham- 

Leaf  -shaped  spear-heads. 

Proc.    Soc.  Ant.,  vol.  iv. 

wood  Forest,  Leices- 

p. 323. 

tershire. 

65.  Ebnall,          Oswestry, 

Two  punches  ? 

Arch.    Journ.,    vol.    xxii. 

Salop. 

p.  167. 

56.  Exning,  Suffolk. 

Mostly  perfect  ? 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3  ; 

vol.  ix.,  p.  303. 

67.  Melbourn,  Cambs. 

Sword  broken,  a  clasp. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xi.    p. 

294. 

58.  Stanhope,  Durham. 

Leaf-shaped    spears,  fragment    o; 
sword,  broken  hammer,  &c. 

Arch.  JEliana,  vol.    i.    p. 
13. 

59.  Thorndon,  Suffolk. 

All  entire.      Most    of    these  are 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  3. 

figured  on  previous  pages. 

60.  Wallingford,  Berks. 

Entire  ;  mostly  here  figured. 

Penes  Auct. 

61.  Whittlesea,          Cam- 

Entire ;  one  celt  with  loop  on  face 

In  Wisbech  Museum. 

bridgeshire. 

62.  Barrington,  Cambs. 

Perfect. 

Penes  Auct. 

63.  Porkington,       Shrop- 

Point broken  off  sword. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  vii.   p. 

shire. 

195. 

64.  Trillick,  Tyrone. 

Perfect  ;  two  rings  with  cross  per 
f  orations  for  the  pin. 

Journ.    Hist,    and    Arch. 
Assoc.  of  Irel.,    3rd  S., 

vol.  i.  p.  164. 

65.  Bo  Island,  Fermanagh 

Sword  and  hammer  broken. 

Penes  Auct. 

66.  Uangwyllog,    Angle 

Connected  with  the  other  hoards 

Arch.    Journ.,  vol.    xxii. 

sea. 

by  the  razor  and  buttons. 

p.  74. 

67.  Meldreth,  Cambs. 

Most  of  the  objects  broken  ;  sock 

In  British  Museum. 

eted  chisel,  flat  lunate  knife  with 

opening  in  middle,  caldron  ring. 

68.  Hounslow,  Middlesex 

One  flat  celt,  swords  in  fragments 

Proc.   Soc.   Ant.,  2nd   S., 

vol.  iii.  p.  90  ;   vol.  v. 

p.  428. 

69.  Hundred      of      Hoc 

Most  of  the  objects  broken.    See  p 

Arch.    Cant.,  vol.   xi.   p. 

Kent. 

95. 

123. 

LISTS    OF    PRINCIPAL    HOARDS. 


467 


Locality. 

Remarks. 

Reference. 

70.  Guilsfield,    Montgom- 

Objects for  the  most  part  broken, 

Proc.  Soc.    Ant.,   2nd   S., 

eryshire. 

spear-heads  with    lunate    open- 

vol. ii.  p.  251  ;     Arch. 

ings. 

Camb.,    3rd   S.,  vol.  x. 

p.    214;     Montg.    Coll., 

vol.  iii.  p.  437. 

7  1  .  Wick  Park,  Stogursey, 

Swords    broken,    numerous    frag- 

Proc.   Soc.   Ant.,   2nd   S., 

Somerset. 

ments  of  other  forms. 

vol.  v.  p.  427. 

72.  Chrishall,  Essex. 

Portion  of  socketed  knife. 

Neville's  "Sep.  Exp.,"  p.3. 

73.  Romford,  Essex. 

Swords    broken,    socketed    chisel, 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  ix.    p. 

celts  not  trimmed. 

302. 

74.  Cumberlow,    Baldock, 

Swords  in  fragments. 

Journ.  Anth.  Inst.,  vol.  \l. 

Herts. 

p.  195. 

75.  Beachy    Head,   East- 

Fragment    of    sword,    four    gold 

Arch.,  vol.  xvi.  p.  363. 

bourne,  Sussex. 

bracelets. 

76.  Burgesses'      Meadow, 
Oxford. 

An  ingot  9f  inches  long. 

In  Ashmolean  Museum. 

77.  Westow,  Yorkshire. 

Seventeen       fragments      included 

Arch.    Journ.,  vol.  vi.  p. 

among    the    celts  ;     one    chisel 

381;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ., 

socketed,  two  tanged. 

vol.  iii.  p.  58. 

78.  Carlton  Rode,  Norfolk. 

One    tanged    gouge,    tanged    and 

Smith's  "Coll.  Ant.,"  vol.i. 

socketed  chisels. 

105  ;  Arch.  Journ.  ,  vol.  ii. 

80  ;  Arch.  Assoc.  Journ., 

vol.   i.   p.    51  ;     Arch., 

vol.  xxxi.  p.  494. 

79.  Kenidjack  Cliff,  Corn- 

Large oval  jet. 

Journ.  Roy.  Inst.  of  Corn., 

wall. 

No.  xxi. 

80.  HelsdonHall.Norfolk. 

Found  before  1759. 

Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  116. 

81.  Worthing,  Sussex. 

Found  in  an  earthern  vessel. 

Specimens  penes  Auct. 

82.  Reach  Fen,  Cambs. 

Fragments  of    swords  and  many 

Arch.  Assoc.   Joum.,  vol. 

broken  objects. 

xxxvi.,  p.  56. 

83.  Haynes      Hill,     Salt- 
wood,  Kent. 

Objects  nearly  all  broken. 

Arch.    Journ.,   vol.     xxx. 
p.    279  ;    Journ.    Anth. 

Inst.,  vol.  iii.  p.  230. 

84.  Allhallows,Hoo,Kent. 

Objects  mostly  broken,  flat  knife. 

Arch.    Cant.,   vol.   xi.     p. 

See  p.  214. 

124. 

86.  St.  Hilary,  Cornwall. 

Swords  in  fragments  ;  weight  alto- 

Arch., vol.  xv.  p.  120. 

gether  about  80  Ibs. 

86.  Longy    Common,  Al- 

Socketed    sickle,     objects    mostly 

Arch.   Assoc.   Journ.,  vol. 

derney. 

broken. 

iii.  p.  9. 

87  Kingston  Hill,  Coombe, 

Objects  all  fragmentary. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxvi.  p. 

Surrey. 

288. 

88.  Sittingbourne,  Kent. 

In   two   urns  ;   broken  sword  and 
rings  in  one  urn,  celts,  &c.,  in 

Smith's  "  Coll.  Ant.,"  vol. 
i.  p.  101  ;  Arch.  Journ., 

the  other. 

vol.  ii.  p.  81. 

89.  Martlesham,  Suffolk. 

Fragments    of    swords,    socketed 

Penes  Capt.  Brooke. 

knife. 

90.  Lanant,  Cornwall. 

Fragments  of    swords;    pieces  of 

Arch.,  vol.  xv.  p.  118. 

gold  in  one  celt. 

91.  West  Halton,  Lincoln- 

Fragment of  sword. 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  x.  p.  69. 

shire. 

92.  Burwell  Fen,  Cambs. 

The  ring  penannular   and  of  tri- 

Penes Auct. 

angular  section. 

93.  Marden,  Kent. 

Found  in  an  earthen  vessel,  mostly 

Arch.  Assoc.   Journ.,  vol. 

broken. 

xiv.  p.  257. 

94.  Kensington,    Middle- 
sex. 

Knives  broken. 

rv 

Proc.   Soc.   Ant.,   2nd  S., 
vol.  iii.  p.  232. 

468 


CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 


Locality. 

Remarks. 

Reference. 

95.  Roseberry      Topping, 
Yorkshire. 

Mostly  broken. 

Arch,  ^liana,  vol.   ii.  p. 
213  ;  Arch.  Scotica,  vol. 

v.  p.  55. 

96.  Danesbury,    Welwyn, 

Mostly  imperfect. 

Arch.   Journ.,  vol.   x.    p. 

Herts. 

248. 

97.  Earsley          Common, 

Nearly  100  celts  found  in  1735. 

Arch.,  vol.  v.  p.  114. 

Yorkshire. 

98.  High  Roding,  Essex. 

Some  figured  in  previous  pages. 

In  British  Museum. 

99.  Panfield,  Essex. 

Possibly  other  forms  found  at  same  Proc.    Soc.   Ant.,   2nd    S.. 

time. 

vol.  v.  p.  428. 

100.  WestwickRow,Hemel 

One  celt  broken. 

Penes  Auct. 

Hempsted,  Herts. 

101.  Achtertyre,    Moray- 

With  tin.     See  p.  425. 

Proc.  Soc.  Ant.  Scot.,  vol. 

shire. 

ix.  p.  435. 

102.  DowriSjParsonstown, 

With  caldrons,  trumpets,  bells,  &c. 

Wilde,  "Catal.  Mus.  R.I. 

King's  County. 

See  p.  361. 

A.,"  pp.  360,  613,  626; 

Proc.  K.  I.  Ac.,  vol.  iv. 

pp.  237,  423. 

103.  Hotham  Carr,  York- 

Palstaves almost  all  damaged. 

Penes    Canon    Greenwell, 

shire. 

F.R.S. 

104.  Beddington,  Surrey. 

Many  fragments,  mould  broken. 

Surrey    Arch.    Soc.    Coll., 

vol.     vi.  ;      Anderson's 

"  Croydon,"  p.  10. 

105.  Isle  of  Harty,  Kent. 

See  p.  441. 

Penes  Auct. 

106.  Heathery  Burn  Cave, 

Socketed  knife,  large  collars  and 

Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xix.  p. 

Durham. 

discs.     Seep.  119,  &c. 

358  ;  Proc.  Soc.  Ant.,  2nd 

S.,  vol.  ii.  p.  127. 

107.  Wickham           Park, 
Croydon,  Surrey. 

Mould  broken,  other  objects  mostly 
fragmentary;    list    partly   com- 

Anderson's "  Croydon,"  p. 
10  ;  British  Museum. 

piled  from  Anderson,  and  partly 
from  originals. 

108.  Wilmington,  Sussex. 

In  an  urn,  mostly  broken  or  worn. 

Suss.  Arch.  Coll.,  vol.  xiv. 

p.    171  ;    Arch.   Journ., 

vol.  xx.  p.   192;    Proc. 

Soc.  Ant.,  2nd  S.,  vol. 

v.  p.  423. 

109.  Cleveland,         York- 

Said to  be  in  the  Bateman  Collec- 

Arch.   Journ.,   vol.    xviii. 

shire. 

tion.      Possibly  the  same  hoard 

p.  166. 

as  No.  95. 

110.  Eaton,  Norfolk. 

Spear-heads  apparently  broken. 

Arch.,   vol.  xxii.  p.  424; 

Arch.    Journ.,   vol.   vi. 

p.     387;     Arch.     Inst., 

Norwich  vol.  p.  xxvi. 

Turning  now  to  the  lists,  the  following  observations  may  be 
made,  though  they  must  be  accepted  as  liable  to  revision  under 
the  light  of  future  discoveries  : — 

1.  That  flat  celts  and  knife-daggers,   such   as  have  been  fre- 
quently   found   in    barrows,    rarely    occur    in    hoards,    only    two 
instances  beino-  recorded  of  the  occurrence  of  flat  celts. 

2,  That    flanged  celts   and.   palstaves   are    occasionally  found 
together,  while  the  latter  are  frequently  associated  with  socketed 
celts. 


INFERENCES  FROM  HOARDS.  469 

3.  That  socketed  weapons  are  of  rare  occurrence  in  association 
with  flanged  celts,  though  a  socketed  dagger  and  a  ferrule  for  a 
tanged  spear-head  or  dagger  were  present  in  the  Arreton  Down 
hoard. 

4.  That  such  tanged  spear-heads  or  daggers  are  never  found 
in  company  with  socketed  celts. 

5.  That  torques  are  more  frequently  associated  with  palstaves 
than  with  socketed  celts,  and  are  mainly  confined  to  our  western 
counties. 

6.  That  there  are  several  instances  of  swords  and   scabbards, 
and  spear-heads  and  ferrules  being  found  together  without  either 
palstaves  or  socketed  celts  being  with  them. 

7.  That  swords,  or  their  fragments,  are  not  found  with  flanged 
celts. 

8.  That  socketed  celts  are  often  found  with  swords  and  spear- 
heads, or  with  the  latter  alone. 

9.  That  socketed  celts  are  often  accompanied  by  gouges,  and 
somewhat  less  frequently  by  hammers  and  chisels,  though  even 
where  such  tools  occur,  spear-heads  are  generally  present. 

10.  That  caldrons,  or  the  rings  belonging  to  them,  have  been 
discovered  with  socketed  celts,  both  in  England  and  Ireland. 

11.  That  where  metal  moulds  are  found  in  hoards  they  are 
usually  those  for  socketed  celts. 

12.  That  where  lumps  of  copper  or  rough  metal  occur  in  hoards, 
socketed  celts  are,  as  a  rule,  found  with  them. 

The  general  inferences  are  much  the  same  as  have  already  been 
indicated  in  former  chapters,  viz.,  that  two  of  the  earliest  forms 
of  bronze  weapons  discovered  in  the  British  Isles  are  the  flat  and 
the  slightly  flanged  celts,  and  the  thin  knife-daggers.  That  these 
are  succeeded  by  the  more  distinctly  flanged  celts,  and  the  tanged 
spear-heads,  with  which  probably  some  of  the  thick  dagger-blades 
found  in  barrows  are  contemporary.  That  subsequently  the  celts 
with  a  stop- ridge  and  the  palstave  form  came  in  and  remained  in 
use  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period,  though  to  a  great  extent 
supplanted  by  the  socketed  celt  which,  as  has  already  been 
shown,  was  probably  evolved  from  one  of  the  forms  of  the 
palstave  ;  and  it  may  here  be  remarked  that  flanged  celts  with 
a  stop-ridge  seem  rarely,  if  ever,  to  occur  in  the  hoards.  That  the 
socketed  chisels,  gouges,  hammers,  and  knives  are  contemporary 
with  the  socketed  celts,  as  are  also  socketed  spear-heads  and 


470  CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.    XXH. 

swords.  That  hoards  in  which  palstaves  only,  and  not  socketed 
celts,  are  present  rarely  belonged  to  ancient  bronze-founders  ;  but 
that  the  deposits  whfch  these  artificers  have  left  behind  them  almost 
all  denote  a  period  when  the  art  of  coring,  and  thereby  producing 
socketed  tools  and  weapons,  was  already  well  known. 

From  this  latter  circumstance,  and  the  comparative  abundance 
of  bronze-founders'  hoards,  it  may  reasonably  be  inferred  that  in 
this  country  they  belong  for  the  most  part  to  the  close  of  the 
Bronze  Period.  To  how  recent  a  date  bronze  remained  in  use  for 
cutting  purposes  is  a  question  difficult  of  accurate  solution.  There 
are,  indeed,  two  instances  in  which  socketed  celts  are  reported  to 
have  been  discovered  in  company  with  ancient  British  coins,  but 
in  neither  case  is  the  evidence  altogether  satisfactory.  Two  unin- 
scribed  silver  coins,  of  the  type  of  my  Plate  F,  No.  2*,  are  stated 
to  have  been  found  with  a  human  skeleton  and  a  bronze  celt  at 
Cann,  near  Shaftesbury,  in  1849  ;  but  I  believe  that  this  state- 
ment would,  if  it  were  now  capable  of  being  sifted,  resolve  itself 
into  the  fact  of  the  two  coins,  the  celt,  and  some  bones  having 
been  found  near  together  by  the  same  workman,  without  their 
being  actually  in  association  together.  The  type  of  the  coins, 
though  probably  among  the  earliest  in  the  British  silver  series, 
is  one  which  was  derived  from  gold  coins  struck  some  considerable 
time  after  the  introduction  of  a  gold  coinage  into  this  country,  and 
probably  belongs  to  the  first  century  B.C.  If  such  coins  were  in 
contemporary  use  with  socketed  celts,  it  is  strange  that  none  of  the 
gold  coins  of  earlier  date  have  ever  been  found  associated  with 
bronze  instruments. 

It  is  true  that  in  the  account  given  in  the  Archceologia  t 
of  the  antiquities  discovered  on  Hagbourn  Hill,  Berks,  it  is  stated 
that  at  the  bottom  of  a  pit  about  four  feet  from  the  surface  of  the 
ground  was  a  further  circular  excavation,  in  which,  together  with 
bronze  bridle-bits  and  buckles  of  Late  Celtic  patterns,  were  socketed 
celts,  and  a  spear-head  of  bronze,  and,  in  addition,  some  coins. 
These,  however,  were  not  seen  by  the  writer  of  the  account,  but 
he  was  informed  "  that  one  of  them  was  silver  and  the  other  gold, 
the  latter  of  which  was  rather  large  and  flat,  and  perhaps  one  of 
the  lower  empire."  Looking  at  the  Late  Celtic  character  of  some 
of  the  objects  it  seems  possible  that  Ancient  British  coins  might 
have  been  found  with  them  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  evident 
that  the  particulars  given  of  the  find  were  all  derived  from  the 

*  Evans's  "  Coins  of  the  Anc.  Britons,"  p.  102.  t  Vol.  xvi.  p.  348. 


DATE    OF    TRANSITION    TO   IRON.  471 

workmen  who  dug  up  the  objects,  and  not  from  personal  observa- 
tion ;  and  it  is  possible  that  not  only  were  the  coins  described  not 
actually  found  with  the  bronze  celts  and  spear-heads,  but  that  these 
latter  were  not  discovered  in  actual  association  with  the  Late  Celtic 
bridle-bits.  I  have,  however,  provisionally  accepted  the  account  of 
their  being  found  together,  relying  to  some  extent  on  the  Aber- 
gele*  hoard,  in  which  some  buckles  allied  in  form  to  those  from 
Hagbourn  Hill  were  present,  associated  with  slides  such  as  have 
been  elsewhere  found  with  socketed  celts. 

Whatever  may  be  the  real  state  of  the  case  in  these  dis- 
coveries, there  is  every  probability  of  a  transition  having  gradually 
taken  place  in  this  country,  from  the  employment  of  bronze  for 
cutting  tools  and  weapons  of  offence  to  the  use  of  iron  or  steel 
for  such  instruments  ;  in  other  words,  from  a  Bronze  Age  to  an 
Iron  Age,  such  as  that  to  which  the  term  "  Late  Celtic  "  has  been 
applied. 

That  this  transition  must  have  been  effected,  at  all  events  in  the 
South  of  Britain,  prior  to  the  Roman  invasion,  is  shown,  as  has 
already  been  pointed  out,  by  the  circumstance  that  the  Early 
Iron  swords  found  in  France  belong  in  all  probability  to  a  period 
not  later  than  the  fourth  or  fifth  century  B.C.,  while  the  southern 
parts  of  Britain  had,  long  before  Caesar's  time,  been  peopled  by 
Belgic  immigrants,  who  either  brought  the  knowledge  of  iron  with 
them  or  must  have  received  it  after  their  arrival  from  their 
kinsmen  on  the  continent,  with  whom  they  were  in  constant 
intercourse.  In  the  more  northern  parts  of  Britain  and  in  Scotland 
an  acquaintance  with  iron  was  probably  first  made  at  a  somewhat 
more  recent  period  ;  but  in  the  Late  Celtic  interments  in  York- 
shire no  coins  are  present,  and  the  iron  and  other  objects  found 
exhibit  no  traces  of  Roman  influence.  Moreover,  the  Roman 
historians,  who  have  recorded  many  of  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  northern  Britons,  do  not  in  any  way  hint  at  their  weapons 
being  formed  of  bronze. 

In  Ireland,  perhaps,  which  was  less  accessible  from  the  continent 
than  Britain,  the  introduction  of  iron  may  have  taken  place  con- 
siderably after  the  time  when  it  was  known  in  the  sister  country  ; 
but  there  appears  to  have  been  a  sufficient  intercourse  between 
Scotland  and  the  north  of  Ireland  at  an  early  period  for  the 
knowledge  of  so  useful  a  metal,  when  once  gained,  to  have 
been  quickly  communicated  from  one  country  to  the  other. 

*  Supra,  p.  405  ;  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  006. 


472  CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN   OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 

On  the  whole  I  think  we  may  fairly  conclude  that  in  the 
southern  parts  of  Britain  iron  must  have  been  in  use  not  later  than 
the  fourth  or  fifth  century  B.C.,  and  that  by  the  second  or  third 
century  B.C.  the  employment  of  bronze  for  cutting  instruments  had 
there  practically  ceased.  These  dates  are  of  course  approximate  only, 
but  will  at  all  events  serve  to  give  some  idea  of  the  latest  date  to 
which  bronze  weapons  and  tools  found  in  England  may  with  some 
degree  of  safety  be  assigned. 

As  to  the  time  at  which  such  weapons  and  tools  were  here  first 
in  use,  we  have  even  less  means  of  judging  than  we  have  as  to 
when  they  fell  into  desuetude.  It  is,  however,  evident  that  the 
Bronze  Period  of  the  British  Isles  must  have  extended  over  a  long 
period  of  years,  probably  embracing  many  centuries.  The 
numerous  bronze-founders'  hoards,  containing  fragments  of  tools 
and  weapons  of  so  many  various  forms,  testify  to  the  art  of  bronze- 
founding  having  been  practised  for  a  lengthened  period ;  and 
yet  in  all  of  these  the  socketed  celt  occurs,  or  some  other 
socketed  instruments,  which  we  know  to  have  been  contemporary 
with  it,  are  present.  It  is  true  that  the  socketed  celt  was  not 
originally  developed  in  this  country,  but  was  introduced  from 
abroad ;  and,  as  has  already  been  pointed  out,  was  derived  from  a 
form  of  palstave  which  is  of  rare  occurrence  in  Britain.  Yet  the 
length  of  time  requisite  for  the  modification  of  the  flat  form  of 
celt  to  that  with  flanges,  of  this  latter  again  to  that  with  the 
flanges  produced  into  wings,  and  finally  the  transition  into  the 
palstave  with  the  wings  hammered  over  so  as  to  form  sockets  on 
each  side  of  the  blade,  must  itself  have  been  of  very  great  duration.* 
The  development  of  the  forms  of  palstave  common  to  Britain  and 
the  opposite  shores  of  the  Continent  must  also  have  demanded  a 
long  lapse  of  years,  and  most  of  the  stages  in  its  evolution  can  be 
traced  in  this  country.  We  have  the  flat  celt,  the  flanged  celt, 
and  the  flanged  celt  with  a  stop-ridge  ;  and  we  can  trace  the 
modification  of  form  from  one  stage  to  another  until  the  charac- 
teristic palstave  is  reached,  in  which  the  stop-ridge  is  as  it  were 
formed  in  the  actual  body  of  the  blade.  And  it  is  to  be  observed 
that  this  form  of  palstave  had  already  been  developed  at  the  time 
represented  by  the  earliest  of  the  ordinary  bronze-founders'  hoards, 
in  which,  moreover,  the  flanged  celts,  either  with  or  without  a 
stop-ridge,  are  hardly  ever  present. 

*  See  also  Col.  A.  Lane  Fox's  "Primitive  Warfare,  Sect.  III.,"  in  Jottru.  R.  U. 
Strviee  Inst.,  vol.  xiii. 


DATE  AND  DURATION  OF  BRONZE  AGE.  473 

The  Bronze  Age  of  Britain  may,  therefore,  be  regarded  as  an 
aggregate  of  three  stages  :  the  first,  that  characterized  by  the  flat 
or  slightly  flanged  celts,  and  the  knife-daggers  frequently  found  in 
barrows  associated  with  instruments  and  weapons  formed  of  stone ; 
the  second,  that  characterized  by  the  more  heavy  dagger-blades  and 
the  flanged  celts  and  tanged  spear-heads  or  daggers,  such  as  those 
from  Arreton  Down  ;  and  the  third,  by  palstaves  and  socketed  celts 
and  the  many  forms  of  tools  and  weapons,  of  which  fragments  are  so 
constantly  present  in  the  hoards  of  the  ancient  bronze-founders. 
It  is  in  this  third  stage  that  the  bronze  sword  and  the  true 
socketed  spear-head  first  make  their  advent.  The  number  of 
these  hoards,  and  the  varieties  in  the  forms  of  these  swords  and 
spear-heads,  as  well  as  in  the  socketed  celts  and  other  tools, 
would,  I  think,  justify  us  in  assigning  a  minimum  duration  of  some 
four  or  five  centuries  to  this  last  stage.  The  other  two  stages 
together  must  probably  have  extended  over  at  least  an  equal  lapse 
of  time  ;  so  that  for  the  total  duration  of  the  Bronze  Period  in 
Britain  we  cannot  greatly  err  in  attributing  eight  or  ten  centuries. 
This  would  place  the  beginning  of  the  Period  some  1,200  or  1,400 
years  B.C. — a  date  which  in  many  respects  would  seem  to  fit  in 
with  what  we  know  as  to  the  use  of  bronze  in  the  southern  parts 
of  Europe.* 

Although  I  have  thus  attempted  to  assign  a  definite  chronology 
to  our  Bronze  Age,  I  do  so  with  all  reserve,  as  any  such  attempt  is 
founded  upon  what  are  at  best  imperfect  data,  and  each  of  the 
stages  I  have  mentioned  may  have  been  of  far  longer  duration 
than  I  have  suggested,  though  it  is  not  likely  that  any  of  them 
should  have  been  materially  shorter. 

There  is,  it  must  be  acknowledged,  the  difficulty  which  I  have 
already  mentioned,  as  to  the  absence  of  nearly  all  traces  of  the  later 
stages  of  the  Bronze  Period  in  the  graves  and  barrows  that  have 
been  examined  in  Britain,  t  The  reason  of  this  absence  has  still 
to  be  discovered  ;  but  it  may  perhaps  have  been  the  case  that 
during  this  time  the  method  or  fashion  of  interring  the  dead 
underwent  some  change,  and  the  practice  of  placing  weapons  and 
ornaments  with  the  bodies  of  departed  friends  and  relatives  fell 
into  disuse.  Among  the  bronze-using  occupants  of  the  Yorkshire 
Wolds,  whose  burial-places  have  been  explored  by  Canon  Green- 
well,  the  interments  by  inhumation  were  much  in  excess  over  those 

*  The  Bronze  Period  of  Switzerland  has  by  some  been  calculated  to  have  begun  not 
less  than  3,000  years  B.C. — ZaborowsM  Moindron,  "L'Anc.  de  1'homme,"  1874,  p.  208. 

*  See  GreenweU's  "  British  Barrows,"  p.  44  et  seqq. 


474  CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.  XXII. 

which  took  place  after  cremation,  but  in  other  parts  of  England 
the  proportions  are  reversed.  Out  of  fourteen  instances  *  in  which 
bronze  articles  were  associated  with  an  interment,  it  was  only  in 
two  that  the  body  had  been  burnt ;  or  taking  the  whole  number 
of  burials,  viz.  301  by  inhumation  and  78  after  cremation,  bronze 
articles  were  found  with  4  per  cent,  of  the  burials  of  the  former 
kind  and  only  2J  per  cent,  with  those  of  the  latter.  This  seems 
to  point  to  a  tendency  towards  departing  from  the  old  custom  of 
burying  weapons  with  the  dead  for  use  in  a  future  life.  And, 
indeed,  if  the  custom  of  burning  the  dead  became  general, 
the  inducement  to  place  such  objects  among  mere  dust  and  ashes 
would  be  but  small.  An  urn  or  a  small  recess  in  the  ground 
would  suffice  to  contain  the  mightiest  warrior,  and  his  weapons 
would  be  out  of  place  beside  the  little  calcined  heap  which  was 
left  by  the  purifying  fire.  Even  the  practice  of  raising  mounds  or 
barrows  over  the  interments  may  have  ceased,  and  "  when  the 
funeral  pyre  was  out  and  the  last  valediction  over,  men  took  a 
lasting  adieu  of  their  interred  friends." 

It  has  been  suggested  that  the  absence  of  the  later  bronze  forms 
with  interments  is  due  to  a  superstitious  reverence  for  the  older 
forms,  so  that  the  habit  of  burying  the  flat  wedge-shaped  axe  t  and 
the  dagger  with  the  dead  continued  down  to  the  later  Age  of 
Bronze  ;  but  I  cannot  accept  this  view. 

In  Scandinavia  +  interments  with  which  bronze  swords  and  other 
weapons  are  associated,  have  frequently  been  discovered ;  and  in 
some  instances  in  which  coffins,  hollowed  out  in  trunks  of  trees, 
have  been  used,  even  the  clothing  has  been  preserved.  In  this 
country  also  coffins  of  the  same  kind  have  occasionally  been  dis- 
covered, but  the  bronze  objects  which  have  been  placed  in  them 
are  of  the  same  character  as  those  which  are  found  in  the  barrows 
of  the  district,  and  never  comprise  socketed  weapons  or  swords. 
Stone  weapons  are  also  occasionally  present.  Remains  of  clothing 
made  of  skins  and  of  woven  woollen  fabric  have  also  been  found. 
The  best-known  instance  of  the  discovery  of  the  latter  was  in  a 
barrow  at  Scale  House,  §  near  Rylston,  Yorkshire,  examined  by 
Canon  Greenwell,  who  has  recorded  other  instances  of  these  tree- 
burials.  Neither  bronze  nor  stone  were  in  this  instance  present. 

It  is  not,  however,  my  intention  to  dilate  upon  the  burial 
customs  of  our  Bronze  Age,  as  they  have  already  been  so  fully 

*  "British  Barrows,"  p.  19.  t  Dawkins's  "  Early  Man  in  Britain,"  p.  348. 

J  See  Worsaae  in  Arch.  Journ.,  vol.  xxiii.  p.  30. 

§  "  British  Barrows,"  pp.  32,  375.     See  also  Reliqttery,  vol.  vi.  p.  1. 


SOURCE   OF    BRONZE    CIVILISATION.  475 

discussed  by  Canon  Greenwell,  Dr.  Thurnam,  Sir  John  Lubbock, 
and  others. 

It  will  now  be  desirable  to  say  something  as  to  the  sources  from 
which  the  use  of  bronze  in  this  country  was  derived,  though  on 
this  subject  also  much  has  already  been  written. 

The  four  principal  views  held  by  different  authors  have  thus  been 
summarized  by  Colonel  A.  Lane  Fox,  now  General  Pitt  Rivers  : — * 

1.  That  bronze  was  spread  from  a  common  centre  by  an  intru- 
ding and  conquering  race,  or  by  the  migration  of  tribes. 

2.  That  the  inhabitants  of  each  separate  region  in  which  bronze 
is  known  to  have  been  used  discovered  the  art  independently,  and 
made  their  own  implements  of  it. 

3.  That  the  art  was  discovered  and  the  implements  fabricated 
on  one  spot,  and  the  implements  disseminated  from  that  place  by 
means  of  commerce. 

4.  That  the  art  of  making  bronze  was  diffused  from  a  common 
centre,  but  that  the  implements  were  constructed  in  the  countries 
in  which  they  were  found. 

For  a  full  discussion  of  these  hypotheses  I  must  refer  the  reader 
to  General  Pitt  Rivers'  Paper,  but  I  shall  here  make  use  of  some 
of  the  information  which  he  has  collected,  premising  that  in  my 
opinion  there  is  a  certain  amount  of  truth  embodied  in  each  of 
these  opinions. 

The  first  view,  of  an  intruding  and  conquering  race  having 
introduced  the  use  of  bronze  into  their  country,  has  been  held  by 
most  of  the  Scandinavian  antiquaries,  and  Professor  Boyd  Dawkins 
seems  to  regard  a  Celtic  invasion  and  conquest  of  the  Iberic  peoples 
in  Britain  as  having  been  the  means  by  which  the  knowledge  of 
bronze  was  extended  from  Gaul  to  these  islands.  The  osteological 
evidence  in  favour  of  the  bronze-using  Britons  having  as  a  rule 
been  of  a  different  race  from  the  stone-using  people  of  our 
Neolithic  times  is  strongly  corroborative  of  such  a  view  ;  as  is 
also  the  change  which  is  to  be  noted  in  the  burial  customs  of  the 
two  periods.  Such  an  immigration  or  conquest  must,  however, 
have  taken  place  at  a  very  early  period  if  we  accept  Sir  John 
Lubbock'st  view,  that  between  B.C.  1500  and  B.C.  1200  the 
Phoenicians  were  already  acquainted  with  the  mineral  fields  of 
Britain,  a  period  at  which  it  must  not  be  forgotten  the  use  of 
bronze  had  long  been  known  in  Egypt.  Although  it  is  true  that 

*  "Primitive  Warfare,  Sect.  III. ; "  Journ.  £.  U.  S.  Inst.,  vol.  xiii. 
t  "  Preh.  Times,"  p.  73. 


476  .CHRONOLOGY    AND    ORIGIN   OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.  XXII. 

at  present  we  have  no  satisfactory  proof  of  any  Phoenician  influence 
on  the  people  of  our  Bronze  Age,  yet  if  at  so  early  a  period  there 
was  an  export  of  tin  from  this  country,  the  search  for  that  metal 
and  the  means  employed  for  its  production  would  almost  of 
necessity  tend  to  an  acquaintance  with  copper  also,  even  supposing, 
what  is  improbable,  that  those  who  traded  for  tin  hi  order  to 
manufacture  bronze  with  it  kept  the  knowledge  of  this  latter 
alloy  from  those  with  whom  they  had  commercial  relations,  or 
that  the  natives  of  Britain  were  not  already  acquainted  with  more 
metals  than  tin  when  the  trade  first  began.  But  to  this  subject 
I  shall  recur.  It  may  be  observed  by  the  way  that  the  date 
assigned  for  this  Phoenician  intercourse  corresponds  in  a  remark- 
able manner  with  the  date  assigned  for  the  earliest  instances  of 
the  use  of  bronze  in  Britain,  which  was  suggested  on  other 
grounds. 

The  second  view  of  the  independent  discovery  of  bronze  in 
different  regions  has  little  or  nothing  to  support  it  so  far  as  the 
different  countries  of  Europe  are  concerned,  though  there  is  a 
possibility  that  the  discovery  of  copper  and  of  the  method  of 
alloying  it  with  tin,  so  as  to  produce  bronze,  may  have  been  made 
independently  in  America.  But  it  may  even  there  be  the 
case  that  the  knowledge  of  bronze  was  imported  from  Asia.*  In 
Europe,  however,  when  once  the  use  of  the  metal  was  known, 
there  were  certain  types  of  weapons  and  implements  developed  in 
different  countries  which  in  a  certain  sense  may  be  regarded  as 
instances  of  independent  discoveries. 

The  third  view,  that  the  art  was  discovered  at  some  single  spot 
at  which  subsequently  implements  were  manufactured  and  dis- 
seminated by  commerce  must,  at  least  to  a  limited  extent,  be  true. 
Wherever  the  discovery  of  bronze  may  have  been  made,  there  is 
ample  evidence  of  its  use  having  spread  over  the  greater  part  of 
Europe  if  not  of  Asia  ;  and  at  first  the  spread  of  bronze  weapons 
and  tools  was  in  all  probability  by  commerce.  Even  subsequently 
there  were  local  centres,  such  as  Etruria,  from  which  the  manufac- 
tured products  were  exported  into  neighbouring  countries,  as  well 
as  to  those  lying  to  the  north  of  the  Alps.  Some  even  of  the 
bronze  vases  found  in  Ireland,  though  themselves  not  of  Etruscan 
manufacture,  bear  marks  of  Etruscan  influences  in  their  form  and 
character.  In  each  country  in  Europe  there  may  have  been  one 
or  more  localities  in  which  the  manufacture  of  bronze  objects  was 

*  Worsaae,  in  "Aarb.  for  Nord.  Oldk.,"  1879,  p.  327. 


DIVISION    INTO   PROVINCES.  477 

principally  carried  on,  though  it  may  now  be  impossible  to  identify 
the  spots.  Such  large  hoards  of  unfinished  castings  as  those  of 
Ple'ne'e  Jugon,  and  other  places  in  Brittany,  prove  that  district, 
for  instance,  to  have  been  at  one  time  a  kind  of  manufacturing 
centre.  Indeed,  a  socketed  celt  of  Breton  type,  unused,  and  still 
retaining  the  burnt  clay  core,  has  been  found  on  our  southern 
coast. 

The  process  of  casting,  as  practised  by  the  ancient  bronze- 
founders,  was,  moreover,  one  requiring  a  great  amount  of  skill  ; 
and  though  there  appear  to  have  been  wandering  founders,  who, 
like  the  bell-founders  of  mediaeval  times,  could  practise  their  art 
at  any  spot  where  their  services  were  required,  yet  there  were 
probably  fixed  foundries  also,  where  the  process  of  manufacture 
could  be  more  economically  carried  on,  and  where  successive  gene- 
ration^ passed  through  some  sort  of  apprenticeship  to  learn  the  art 
and  mystery  of  the  trade. 

The  fourth  opinion,  that  the  use  of  bronze  spread  from  some 
single  centre,  though  implements  were  manufactured  in  greater  or 
less  abundance  in  each  country  where  the  use  of  bronze  prevailed, 
is  one  that  must  commend  itself  to  all  archaeologists.  It  does 
not,  of  course,  follow  that  in  any  given  district  the  bronze 
tools  and  weapons  were  all  of  home  manufacture,  and  none  of 
them  imported.  There  is,  on  the  contrary,  evidence  to  be  found 
in  most  countries  that  some,  at  least,  of  the  bronze  instruments 
found  there  are  of  foreign  manufacture,  and  introduced  either  by 
commerce  or  by  the  foreign  travel  of  individuals. 

Where  the  original  centre  was  placed,  from  which  the  European 
use  of  bronze  was  propagated,  is  an  enigma  still  under  discussion, 
and  one  which  will  not  readily  be  solved.  Appearances  at  present 
seem  to  point  to  its  having  been  situate  in  Western  Asia  ;*  but  the 
whole  question  of  the  origin  and  development  of  the  Bronze 
civilisation  has  been  so  recently  discussed  by  my  friend  Professor 
Boyd  Dawkins,  in  his  "  Early  Man  in  Britain,"  that  it  appears 
needless  here  to  repeat  the  opinions  of  which  he  has  given  so  good 
an  abstract.  Suffice  it  to  say,  that  it  has  been  proposed  to  regard 
the  bronze  antiquities  of  Europe  as  belonging  generally  to  three 
provinces,t  the  boundaries  of  which,  however,  cannot  be  very 
accurately  defined.  These  provinces  are — the  Uralian,  comprising 
Russia,  Siberia,  and  Finland  ;  the  Danubian,  which  consists  of  the 

»  See  A.  Bertrand  in  Rev.  Arch.,  vol.  xxvi.  p.  363. 
t  See  Chantre,  "  Age  du  Bronze,"  2dme  ptie.  p.  281. 


478  CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF   BRONZE.         [CHAP.    XXII. 

Hungarian,  Scandinavian,  and  Britannic  sub-divisions  or  regions ; 
and  the  Mediterranean,  composed  of  the  Italo-Greek  and  Franco- 
Swiss  sub-divisions. 

I  must  confess  that  I  do  not  attach  such  high  importance  to  this 
classification  as  at  first  sight  it  would  seem  to  merit ;  for  on  a 
close  examination  it  appears  to  me  to  involve  several  serious 
incongruities.  Take,  for  instance,  the  Danubian  province,  and  it 
will  be  found  that  the  differences  in  type  of  bronze  instruments 
belonging  to  the  Hungarian  region,  when  compared  with  those  of 
the  British,  are  on  the  whole  greater  than  the  difference  presented 
when  they  are  compared  with  the  types  of  the  Italian  region, 
which,  however,  is  made  to  belong  to  another  province.  There  is, 
moreover,  a  difficulty  in  synchronizing  the  antiquities  belonging  to 
different  provinces  or  regions,  so  as  to  be  sure  that  any  comparisons 
between  them  are  of  real  value.  Taking,  for  example,  the  Uralian 
province,  it  will  at  once  be  seen  that  though  in  Finland  some  Scan- 
dinavian types  occur,  such  as  swords  and  palstaves,  yet  the  great 
majority  of  the  bronze  antiquities  belonging  to  it,  so  far  as  at 
present  known,  consist  of  socketed  celts,  often  with  two  loops ;  of 
daggers,  with  their  hafts  cast  in  one  piece  with  the  blade ;  and  of 
perforated  axes,  sometimes  with  the  representations  of  the  heads 
of  animals  ;  in  fact,  of  objects  which  evidently  belong  to  a  very 
late  stage  in  the  evolution  of  bronze,  and  which,  as  Mr.  Worsaae 
has  pointed  out,  not  improbably  show  traces  of  Chinese  influence. 
Such  objects  can  hardly  be  satisfactorily  compared  with  those  of  a 
province  in  which  the  whole  development  of  bronze  instruments, 
from  the  flat  celt  and  small  knife,  to  the  socketed  celt  and  the 
skilfully  cast  spear-head  and  sword,  can  be  traced. 

All  things  considered,  I  think  it  will  be  better  and  safer  to 
content  ourselves  for  the  present  with  less  extensive  provinces  ; 
and,  so  far  as  these  are  concerned,  the  sub-divisions  already  enume- 
rated may  be  accepted,  and  are  quite  sufficiently  large,  if,  indeed, 
they  are  not  too  extensive.  In  the  Britannic  province,  a  part  of 
France  is  included  by  M.  Chantre,  and  there  are  certainly  close 
analogies  between  many  of  the  types  of  the  south  of  England  and 
those  of  the  north  and  north-west  of  France.  For  the  purpose  of 
the  present  work,  though  accepting  M.  Chantre's  boundary  in  the 
main,  I  shall,  however,  restrict  the  Britannic  province  to  the 
British  Isles. 

On  a  general  examination  of  our  British  types  it  is  satisfactory 
to  see  how  complete  a  series  of  links  in  the  chain  of  development 


THE    BRITANNIC   PROVINCE.  479 

of  the  bronze  industry  is  here  to  be  found,  though  many  of  them 
bear  undoubted  marks  of  foreign  influence,  and  prove  that  though 
some  of  the  types  were  of  native  growth,  yet  that  others  were 
originally  imported.  On  general  grounds,  I  have  assigned  an 
antiquity  of  1,200  or  1,400  years  B.C.  to  the  introduction  of  the 
use  of  bronze  into  this  country,  but  it  is  a  question  whether  this 
antiquity  will  meet  all  the  necessities  of  the  case  ;  for  we  can 
hardly  imagine  the  Phoenicians,  or  those  who  traded  with  them, 
landing  in  Britain  and  spontaneously  discovering  tin.  On  the 
contrary,  it  must  have  been  from  a  knowledge  that  the  inhabitants 
of  Britain  were  already  producers  of  this  valuable  metal  that  the 
commerce  with  them  originated ;  and  the  probable  reason  that  tin 
was  sought  for  by  the  native  Britons  was  in  order  to  mix  it  with 
copper,  a  metal  which  occurs  native  in  the  same  district  as  the  tin. 
If,  therefore,  the  Phoenician  intercourse,  direct  or  indirect,  com- 
menced about  1500  B.C.,  the  knowledge  of  the  use  of  tin,  and 
probably  also  of  copper,  dates  back  in  Britain  to  a  still  earlier 
epoch. 

A  comparison  of  the  various  British  types  of  tools  and  weapons 
with  those  of  Continental  countries  has  been  frequently  instituted 
in  the  preceding  pages,  but  it  will  be  well  here  to  recapitulate  some 
of  the  principal  facts.  We  have  in  Britain  the  flat  form  of  celt  in 
some  abundance,  though  none  of  the  specimens  exhibit  traces  of 
being  direct  imitations  of  hatchets  formed  of  stone,  as  would 
probably  have  been  the  case  in  any  country  where  the  use  of 
metal  for  such  instruments  originated.  And  yet  many  of  our 
British  flat  celts  exhibit  a  certain  degree  of  originality,  inasmuch  as 
they  are  decorated  with  hammer-  or  punch-marks  in  a  manner  pecu- 
liar to  this  country,  and  others  in  a  fashion  but  rarely  seen  abroad. 
We  can  trace  the  development  of  the  flanged  celt  from  the  flat 
variety,  through  specimens  with  almost  imperceptible  flanges,  the 
result  merely  of  hammering  the  sides,  to  those  with  the  flanges 
produced  in  the  casting.  At  the  same  time,  the  flanges  are  never 
so  fully  developed  as  in  some  of  the  French  examples. 

The  development  of  a  stop-ridge  between  the  flanges,  which 
eventually  culminated  in  the  ordinary  palstave  form,  can  probably 
be  better  observed  in  the  British  series  than  in  that  of  any  other 
country.  At  the  same  time,  the  origin  of  the  other  form  of 
palstave — that  without  a  definite  stop-ridge,  and  with  semicircular 
wings  bent  over  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  side-pocket — can  best  be 
traced  on  the  Continent,  and  especially  in  the  south  of  France.  It 


480  CHRONOLOGY   AND    ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.  XXII. 

was  from  this  form  of  palstave  that  the  socketed  celt  was  developed, 
and  although  this  development  seems  to  have  taken  place  abroad, 
possibly  in  Western  Germany,  the  form  was  introduced  into  Britain 
at  an  early  period  of  its  existence,  as  is  proved  by  the  semicircular 
projections  and  curved  "flanches"  so  common  on  the  faces  of  the 
socketed  celts  of  this  country. 

Our  knife-daggers  may  originally  have  been  of  foreign  introduc- 
tion, but  evidently  belong  to  a  time  when  metal  was  scarce,  and 
like  the  flat  and  slightly-flanged  celts  have  often  been  found 
associated  with  stone  implements.  The  dagger-blades  of  stouter 
make,  which  seem  to  have  succeeded  them,  show  analogies  with 
French,  Italian,  and  German  examples  ;  but  similar  blades,  with  a 
tang  such  as  those  from  the  Arreton  Down  hoard,  seem  to  be 
almost  peculiar  to  Britain.  The  fact,  however,  that  the  socketed 
blade  found  with  them  has  its  analogues  both  in  Switzerland  and 
Egypt  suggests  the  probability  of  the  tanged  form  being  also  of 
foreign,  and  possibly  Mediterranean  origin ;  indeed,  a  specimen  is 
reported  to  have  been  found  in  Italy. 

Our  halberd  blades  with  the  three  rivets  are  nearly  allied  to 
those  of  northern  Germany  ;  and  the  type  appears  never  to  be 
found  in  France,  though  I  have  met  with  a  solitary  example  in 
Southern  Spain,  and  the  form  is  not  unknown  in  Italy,  there 
being  one  from  the  province  of  Mantua  in  the  British  Museum. 
Socketed  chisels,  hammers,  and  gouges  were  probably  derived  from 
a  foreign  source ;  but  tanged  chisels,  though  not  absolutely  want- 
ing in  the  North  of  France,  are  more  abundant  in  the  British 
Isles  than  elsewhere.  Long  narrow  chisels  with  tangs  were,  how- 
ever, present  in  the  great  Bologna  hoard. 

Bronze  socketed  sickles  are  almost  peculiar  to  the  British  Isles, 
though  they  have  occasionally  been  found  in  the  North  of  France. 
The  flat  form,  from  which  they  must  have  been  developed,  is  of 
rare  occurrence,  though  not  unknown  in  Britain.  Its  origin  is  to 
be  sought  in  the  South  of  Europe,  though  the  British  examples 
more  closely  resemble  German  and  Danish  forms  than  those  of  any 
other  country.  Tanged  single-edged  knives  are  almost  unknown 
in  our  islands,  though  so  abundant  in  the  Swiss  Lake-dwellings 
and  in  the  South  of  France.  Double-edged  knives  with  a  socket 
are,  however,  almost  peculiar  to  Britain  and  Ireland,  though  they  are 
found  in  small  numbers  in  the  North  of  France.  The  tanged 
razor  may  also  be  regarded  as  one  of  our  specialities,  though 
not  unknown  in  Italy.  Most  of  the  foreign  varieties  have  a  ring 


COMPARISON    WITH   CONTINENTAL    FORMS.  481 

for    suspension   at    the    end    of  the    tang,  a   peculiarity   almost 
unknown  in  Britain. 

Bronze  swords,  no  doubt,  originated  on  the  Continent ;  and  as 
such  long  thin  blades  required  great  skill  in  casting,  it  seems 
probable  that  their  manufacture  was  to  some  extent  localized  at  par- 
ticular spots,  and  that  they  formed  an  important  article  of  commerce. 
The  same  type  has  been  discovered  in  countries  wide  apart,  and 
many  of  those  found  in  Scandinavia  are  now  regarded  as  being  of 
foreign  origin.  Still  there  are  some  British  types  which  are  rarely 
or  never  found  abroad,  and  the  discovery  of  moulds  proves  conclu- 
sively that  both  leaf-shaped  and  rapier-shaped  blades  were  cast  in 
these  islands.  The  latter  kind  of  blades  are,  indeed,  almost 
exclusively  confined  to  Britain  and  the  north  of  France.  Bronze 
scabbard-ends,  as  distinct  from  mere  chapes,  seem  also  to  be  con- 
fined to  the  same  tract  of  country. 

When  we  turn  to  the  spear-heads  of  these  islands  we  find  that 
though  the  leaf-shaped  form  prevails  over  the  greater  part  of 
Europe,  yet  that  those  with  loops  at  the  side  of  the  socket  and  with 
loops  at  the  base  of  the  blade  are  common  in  the  British  Isles, 
while  they  are  extremely  rare  in  France,  and  almost  unknown  else- 
where. The  same  may  be  said  of  the  type  with  the  small 
eyelet-holes  in  the  blade,  and  of  those  with  barbs.  Those  with 
crescent-shaped  openings  in  the  blades  are  also  almost  unknown 
elsewhere,  though  one  example  has  been  found  in  Eussia.  Our 
bronze  shields  with  numerous  concentric  rings  are  also  specially 
British. 

Among  ornaments  formed  of  bronze,  there  are  few,  if  any,  that 
we  can  claim  as  our  own.  Our  torques  seem  more  nearly  connected 
with  those  of  the  Rhine  district  than  of  any  other  part  of  Europe. 
Our  bracelets,  which  are  not  common,  hardly  present  any  special 
peculiarities,  and  brooches  we  have  none. 

Our  spheroidal  caldrons  seem  to  be  of  native  type,  but  with 
them  are  vases  which  almost  undoubtedly  show  an  Etruscan 
influence  in  their  origin. 

We  have  here  then,  I  think,  sufficient  proof  that  Britain,  though 
not  unaffected  by  foreign  influences,  and  in  fact  deriving  many  of 
the  types  of  its  tools  and  weapons  from  foreign  sources,  was,  never- 
theless, a  local  centre  in  which  the  Bronze  civilisation  received 
a  special  and  high  development ;  and  where,  had  extraneous  influ- 
ences been  entirely  absent  after  the  time  when  the  knowledge  of 
Bronze  was  first  introduced,  the  evolution  of  forms  would  probably 


. 


482  CHRONOLOGY    AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 

have  differed  in  but  few  particulars  from  that  which  is  now 
exhibited  by  the  prevailing  types  found  in  this  country. 

If  we  compare  these  British  types  with  those  of  the  other 
regions  which  together  make  up  the  so-called  Danubian  province, 
we  shall  at  once  be  struck,  not  by  the  analogies  presented,  but  by 
the  marked  difference  in  the  general  fades. 

Taking  Scandinavia  to  begin  with,  and  Mr.  Worsaae's  types  as 
giving  the  characteristics  of  that  region,  what  do  we  find  ?  The 
perforated  axe-hammers  and  axes  of  bronze  are  here  entirely  want- 
ing; the  tanged  swords  and  the  majority  of  those  with  decorated  hilts 
are  also  unknown.  There  is  hardly  a  type  of  dagger  common  to 
this  country  and  Scandinavia.  The  saws,  knives,  and  razors  are  of 
quite  another  character,  but  there  is  a  resemblance  in  the  sickles 
to  a  rare  British  type.  The  flat  and  flanged  celts  of  the  two 
regions  are  of  nearly  the  same  kind,  and  in  one  rare  instance  there 
is  a  similar  decoration  on  a  reputedly  Danish  and  on  an  Irish  celt. 
The  palstaves,  however,  are  of  an  entirely  different  character,  with 
the  exception  of  the  form  with  semicircular  wings,  which  is  not 
essentially  British.  The  socketed  celts  are  nearly  all  unlike  those  of 
this  country  ;  and  though  the  leaf-shaped  spear-heads  present  close 
analogies,  the  looped  and  eyed  kinds  are  absent.  The  shields  are 
of  a  different  character  from  ours.  The  tutuli  and  diadems  are 
here  unknown.  There  is  but  one  form  of  torque  common  to  this 
country  and  Denmark.  Brooches,  combs,  and  small  hanging  vases 
are  never  met  with  in  Britain ;  and  the  spiral,  whether  formed 
of  wire  or  engraved  as  an  ornament,  is  conspicuous  by  its  absence. 

If  we  take  the  Hungarian  region,  we  are  driven  to  much  the 
same  conclusions.  The  perforated  axes  and  pick-axes,  principally 
formed  of  copper,  the  semicircular  sickles,  the  spiral  ornaments, 
the  swords  with  engraved  hilts  of  bronze,  and  several  forms  of 
minor  importance  are  absent  in  Britain,  while  the  socketed  celts 
and  the  majority  of  the  palstaves  are  of  markedly  different  types, 
though  that  with  the  semicircular  wings  hammered  over  is  of 
common  occurrence  in  Hungary. 

In  Northern  Germany  the  types  of  bronze  may  be  regarded  as 
intermediate  between  those  of  Hungary  and  Scandinavia,  though 
in  some  few  respects  presenting  closer  analogies  with  those  of 
Britain,  with  which,  as  will  subsequently  be  seen,  there  may  have 
been  some  commercial  intercourse.  The  connection  between 
British  and  German  types  is,  however,  but  small,  and  on  the  whole 
I  think  that  the  evidence  here  brought  forward  is  sufficient*  to 


COMMERCIAL    RELATIONS   OF    BRITAIN.  483 

prove  that  the  British  Isles  can  hardly  be  properly  classified 
as  forming  part  of  any  Danubian  province  of  bronze. 

The  connection  between  France  and  Britain  during  the  Bronze 
Period  cannot  be  denied,  and  in  many  respects  there  is  an  identity 
of  character  between  the  bronze  antiquities  of  the  North  of  France 
and  those  of  the  South  of  England.  The  North  of  France  cannot, 
however,  at  any  time  since  the  first  discovery  of  bronze,  have 
been  absolutely  shut  out  from  all  communication  with  the  South 
and  East.  The  East  must  always  have  been  affected  by  the  habits  of 
those  who  occupied  what  is  now  Western  Germany;  and  the  South 
can  hardly  have  been  exempt  from  the  influence  of  Italy,  if  not, 
indeed,  of  other  Mediterranean  countries.  I  am  inclined  to  think 
that  these  external  influences  acted  also  on  the  bronze  industry 
of  Britain,  not  so  much  directly  as  indirectly,  and  that  some  of  the 
types  in  this  country  may  be  traced  to  an  Italian  or  German  origin 
as  readily  as  to  a  French. 

It  is,  I  think,  a  fact  that  as  close  a  resemblance  in  type,  so  far 
as  regards  our  earliest  bronze  instruments,  may  be  found  among 
Italian  examples  as  among  French.  Many  of  the  slightly  flanged 
celts  of  Italy  can  hardly  be  distinguished  from  those  of  Britain,  ex- 
cept by  the  faces  of  the  latter  being  more  frequently  decorated  ;  and 
there  is  also  a  great  similarity  between  the  dagger-blades  of  the 
two  countries.  In  the  later  forms,  such  as  palstaves  and  socketed 
celts,  the  difference  between  British  and  Italian  examples  is  suffi- 
ciently striking.  May  it  not  be  the  case  that  at  the  time  when 
first  the  commerce  between  Britain  and  the  Mediterranean 
countries  originated,  always  assuming  that  such  a  commerce  took 
place,  the  flanged  celt  was  the  most  advanced  type  of  hatchet 
known  by  those  who  came  hither  to  trade,  and  the  palstave  and 
socketed  form  were  subsequently  developed  ?  At  a  later  period  it 
was  the  German  influence  that  was  felt  in  Britain,  rather  than  the 
Italian,  for  our  socketed  celts  appear,  as  already  stated,  to  have 
had  the  cradle  of  their  family  in  Western  Germany  ;  and  the  few  flat 
sickles  that  have  been  found  in  Britain/as  well  as  the  more  numerous 
torques,  show  a  closer  connection  in  type  with  those  of  Germany 
than  with  those  of  France  or  any  other  country.  Whether  this 
introduction  of  what  appear  to  be  North  German  types  can  in 
any  way  be  attributed  to  commercial  relations  between  the  two 
countries,  and  especially  to  a  trade  in  amber,  is  worth  considera- 
tion. The  abundance  of  amber  ornaments  in  some  of  the  graves 
of  our  Bronze  Period  shows  how  much  that  substance  was  in  use 

n2 


484  CHRONOLOGY   AND   ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.          [CHAP.  XXII. 

At  the  same  time,  the  eastern  shores  of  England  might  have  fur- 
nished it  in  sufficient  quantity  to  supply  the  demand,  without 
having  recourse  to  foreign  sources.  I  have  known  amber  thrown 
up  on  the  beach  so  far  south  as  Deal. 

A  curious  feature  in  the  comparison  of  the  later  bronze  antiqui- 
ties of  Britain  and  those  of  France,  is  the  marked  absence  of  many 
of  the  forms  which  abound  in  the  remains  of  the  Lake-dwellings  of 
Savoy,  as  well  as  in  those  of  Switzerland.  A  glance  through 
"  Kabul's  Album  "  *  or  "  Keller's  Lake-dwellings,"  will  at  once  show 
how  few  of  the  specimens  there  figured  could  pass  as  having  been 
discovered  in  the  British  Isles.  The  large  proportion  of  ornaments 
to  tools  and  weapons  is  also  striking.  There  is,  indeed,  as  M. 
Chantre  has  pointed  out,  a  closer  connection  between  the  bronze 
antiquities  of  the  South  of  France  and  those  of  Switzerland  and 
Northern  Italy,  than  with  those  of  Northern  France. 

Even  the  character  of  the  ornaments  is  in  many  cases  essentially 
different.  The  hollowed  form  of  bronze  bracelet,  made  from  a  thin 
plate  bent  in  such  a  manner  as  to  show  a  semicircular  section,  is 
entirely  wanting  in  Britain,  and  is  very  rarely  found  in  the  North 
of  France. 

Enough  has,  however,  now  been  said  in  favour  of  regarding 
Britain  as  one  of  those  centres  into  which  a  knowledge  of  the  use 
of  bronze  was  introduced  at  a  comparatively  early  date,  and  where 
a  special  development  of  the  bronze  industry  arose,  extending  over 
a  lengthened  period,  and  modified  from  time  to  time  by  foreign 
influences.  On  the  transition  from  bronze  to  iron,  it  is  not  neces- 
sary here  further  to  enlarge.  I  have,  in  treating  of  the  different 
forms  of  tools  and  weapons,  pointed  out  those  which  I  considered 
to  belong  to  the  close  of  the  Bronze  Period  ;  and  it  is  pro- 
bable that  these  forms  for  some  time  continued  in  use,  side  by  side 
with  those  made  of  the  more  serviceable  metal,  iron,  which  ulti- 
mately drove  bronze  from  the  field,  except  for  ornamental  purposes 
or  for  those  uses  for  which  a  fusible  metal  was  best  adapted.  It 
seems  probable  that,  as  was  «the  case  in  Mediterranean  countries, 
some  of  the  socketed  weapons,  such  as  spear-heads,  which  were 
more  easily  cast  than  forged,  may  for  some  time  have  been  made 
of  bronze  in  preference  to  iron  ;  but  at  present  our  knowledge  of 
any  transitional  period  is  slight,  and  this  question  would  be  best 
treated  of  in  a  work  on  the  Late  Celtic  or  Early  Iron  Period  of 
Britain. 

»  "Habitations  Lacustres  de  la  Savoie,"  1864,  1867,  1869. 


IMPORTED   ORNAMENTS.  485 

Among  the  ornaments  in  use  in  this  country  during  the  Bronze 
Period,  are  some,  the  history  of  which,  if  it  could  be  traced,  might 
throw  light  upon  the  foreign  intercourse  of  that  time,  for  glass  and 
ivory  were  probably  not  of  native  production.*  Glass  beads 
have  occasionally  been  found  in  barrows  of  the  Bronze  Age, 
nearly  always  in  our  southern  counties,  and  with  burnt  in- 
terments. They  are  usually  small  tubes  of  opaque  glass  of 
a  light  blue  or  green  colour,  with  the  outer  surface  divided 
into  rounded  segments,  so  as  to  give  the  appearance  of  a 
number  of  spheroidal  beads  side  by  side.  I  am  not  aware  of  any 
having  been  discovered  with  interments  of  the  Bronze  Age  on 
the  Continent,  but  it  seems  probable  that  such  beads  have 
been  found,  and  they  may  eventually  assist  hi  marking  out  the  lines 
of  ancient  commerce  with  this  country.  A  few  larger  beads,  with 
spiral  serpent-like  ornaments  upon  them,  have  likewise  been  found  ; 
but  these,  also,  I  am  unable  to  compare  with  any  Continental 
examples.  The  finding  of  glass,  however,  in  tombs  belonging  to 
the  early  portion  of  our  Bronze  Age  is  suggestive  of  some  method 
of  intercourse,  direct  or  indirect,  with  Mediterranean  countries. 
The  small  quoit-like  pendants,  formed  of  a  greenish  vitrified 
material,  which  have  been  found  in  Sussext  with  burnt  interments 
of  the  Bronze  Age,  closely  resemble  Egyptian  porcelain,  and  their 
presence  in  this  country  corroborates  this  suggestion. 

The  discovery  of  beads  made  in  sets  like  those  of  glass,  of 
a  bracelet,  buttons,  pins,  and  hooks,  all,  in  Dr.  Thurnam's  opinion, 
formed  of  ivory,  gives  indications  in  the  same  direction ;  for 
though  billiard  balls  have  been  manufactured  from  Scottish 
mammoth  ivory  of  the  Pleistocene  Period,  the  fossil  tusks  found  in 
Britain  are,  as  a  rule,  too  much  decomposed  to  be  any  longer  of 
service,  and  in  this  respect  differ  materially  from  the  fossil  mam- 
moth tusks  of  Siberia,  which  still  furnish  so  much  of  our  table 
cutlery  with  handles. 

For  the  jet  and  amber  ornaments  of  the  Bronze  Period  we  have 
not,  of  necessity,  to  go  so  far  afield  as  for  glass.  Abundance  of  jet 
is  to  be  obtained  in  our  own  country,  and  the  usual  type  of  jet 
necklace,*  with  a  series  of  flat  plates,  seems  to  be  essentially 
British.  Some  of  the  amber  plates  found  at  Hallstatt  are,  how- 

*  See  Thurnam  in  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  494. 

t  Arch.,  vol.  xliii.  p.  497. 

t  See  "Ancient  Stone  Impts.,"  p.  411.  I  may  take  this  opportunity  of  correcting 
the  statement  that  the  Assynt  necklace  is  inlaid  with  gold.  It  is  merely  engraved  with 
various  patterns,  in  which  micaceous  grains  of  sand  got  lodged  and  were  mistaken  for 
gold. 


486  CHRONOLOGY    AND    ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 

ever,  of  the  same  form,  and  perforated  in  the  same  manner,  so 
that  possibly  these  jet  necklaces  may  have  been  made  in  imitation 
of  foreign  prototypes  in  amber.  How  far  the  amber  ornaments  of 
the  Bronze  Period  in  Britain  were  of  native  production  we  have  no 
good  means  of  judging ;  but  the  circumstance  just  mentioned 
is  suggestive  of  Hallstatt  and  Britain  having  been  supplied  from  a 
common  source,  which  may  have  been  on  the  shores  of  the  Baltic. 
On  the  other  hand,  our  amber  ornaments  differ,  as  a  rule,  from 
those  of  Scandinavia,  and,  as  already  remarked,  our  eastern  coast 
would  furnish  an  ample  supply  of  the  raw  material  without  seek- 
ing it  abroad.  It  must,  however,  be  remembered  that  some  of 
the  forms  of  our  bronze  instruments  show  traces  of  German  influ- 
ence, and  that  in  Strabo's  time  both  amber  and  ivory  were  among 
the  articles  exported  from  Celtic  Gaul  to  Britain.  The  remark- 
able amber  cup  from  the  Hove  barrow,  near  Brighton,  I  have 
described  elsewhere.* 

It  remains  for  me  to  say  a  few  words  as  to  the  general  condition 
of  the  inhabitants  of  Britain  during  the  Bronze  Age  ;  but  on  this 
subject,  apart  from  the  light  thrown  upon  it  by  the  tools,  weapons, 
and  ornaments  which  I  have  been  describing,  and  by  the  contents 
of  the  graves  of  the  period,  we  have  in  this  country  but  little  to 
guide  us.  Such  a  complete  insight  into  the  material  civilisation 
of  the  period  as  that  afforded  by  the  Lake-dwellings  of  Switzer- 
land, Savoy,  and  Northern  Italy  is  nowhere  vouchsafed  to  us  in 
Britain.  The  Irish  crannoges,  which,  in  many  respects,  present 
close  analogies  with  the  pile- buildings,  have  remained  in  use  until 
mediaeval  times,  and  in  no  instance  has  the  destruction  of  a  settle- 
ment by  fire  contributed  to  preserve  for  the  instruction  of  future 
ages  the  household  goods  of  the  population.  The  nearest  approach 
to  a  Lake-dwelling  in  England  is  that  examined  in  Barton  Mere,t 
Suffolk,  where,  however,  the  results  were  comparatively  meagre. 
A  single  spear-head  was  found,  apparently  of  the  type  of  Fig.  406, 
and  the  remains  of  various  animals  used  for  food,  including  the 
urus  and  the  hare,  which  latter  in  Caesar's  time  the  Britons  did 
not  eat. 

The  information  to  be  gained  from  the  burial  customs  and  the 
contents  of  the  graves  has  already  been  gathered  by  the  late  Dr. 
Thurnam  and  by  Canon  Green  well,  as  well  as  by  other  antiqua- 
ries, and  I  cannot  do  better  than  refer  to  the  forty-third  volume  of 

*  "  Ancient  Stone  Impts.,"  p.  402. 

t  Dawkins's  "Early  Man  in  Britain,"  p.  352  ;  Quart.  Joura.  Suff.  Inst.,  vol.  i.  p.  31. 


GENERAL    SUMMARY.  487 

the  "  Archaeologia,"  and  to  "  British  Barrows."*  I  may,  however, 
shortly  depict  some  of  the  principal  features  of  the  external  condi- 
tions of  the  bronze-using  population  of  these  islands,  taken  as  a 
whole,  for  no  doubt  the  customs  and  condition  of  the  people  were 
by  no  means  uniform  throughout  the  whole  extent  of  the  country 
at  any  given  moment  of  time. 

As  to  their  dwellings,  we  seem  to  have  no  positive  information, 
but  they  probably  were  of  much  the  same  character  as  those  of  the 
Swiss  Lake  population,  except  that  for  the  most  part  they  were 
placed  upon  the  dry  land,  and  not  on  platforms  above  the  water. 
Their  clothing  was  sometimes  of  skins,  sometimes  of  woollen 
cloth,  and  probably  of  linen  also,  as  they  were  acquainted  with  the 
arts  of  spinning  and  weaving,  Of  domesticated  animals  they 
possessed  the  dog,  ox,  sheep,  goat,  pig,  and  finally  the  horse. 
They  hunted  the  red  deer,  the  roe,  the  wild  boar,  the  hare,  and 
possibly  some  other  animals.  For  the  chase  and  for  warfare  their 
arrows  were  tipped  with  flint,  and  not  with  bronze ;  and  some 
other  stone  instruments,  such  as  scrapers,  remained  in  use  until 
the  end  of  the  period.  At  the  beginning,  as  has  already  often 
been  stated,  the  axe,  the  knife-dagger,  and  the  awl  were  the  only 
articles  of  bronze  in  use.  For  obtaining  fire,  a  nodule  of  pyrites 
and  a  flake  of  flint  sufficed.  Some  cereals  were  cultivated,  as  is 
shown  by  the  bronze  sickles.  Pottery  they  had  of  various  forms, 
some  apparently  made  expressly  for  sepulchral  purposes;  but  they 
were  unacquainted  with  the  potter's  wheel.  Some  vessels  of 
amber  and  shale,  turned  in  the  lathe,  may  have  been  imported 
from  abroad.  Ornaments  were  worn  in  less  profusion  than  in 
Switzerland  ;  but  the  torque  for  the  neck,  the  bracelet,  the  ear-ring, 
the  pin  for  the  dress  and  for  the  hair,  were  all  in  use,  though 
brooches  were  unknown.  Necklaces,  or  gorgets,  formed  of  amber, 
jet,  and  bone  beads  were  not  uncommon  ;  and  the  ornaments  of 
glass  and  ivory,  such  as  those  lately  mentioned,  were  probably 
obtained  by  foreign  commerce.  Gold,  also,  was  often  used  for 
decorating  the  person,  though  coins,  and  apparently  even  the 
metal  silver,  were  unknown.  They  appear  to  have  been  accom- 
plished workers  and  carvers  of  wood  and  horn,  and  there  were 
among  them  artificers  who  inlaid  wood  and  amber  with  minute 
gold  pins  almost  or  quite  as  skilfully  as  the  French  workmen  of 
the  last  century,  who  wrought  on  tortoise-shell.  In  casting 

*  See  also  Rolleston's  App.  to  "British  Barrows;"  Lubbock's  "  Prehist.  Times ;" 
Dawkins's  "Early  Man  in  Britain,"  &c.,  &c. 


488  CHRONOLOGY   AND    ORIGIN    OF    BRONZE.  [CHAP.  XXII. 

and  hammering  out  bronze  they  attained  consummate  skill,  and 
their  spear-heads  and  wrought  shields  could  not  be  surpassed  at 
the  present  day.  The  general  equipment  of  the  warrior  in  the 
shape  of  swords,  daggers,  halberds,  spears,  &c.,  and  the  tools  of 
the  workman,  such  as  hatchets,  chisels,  gouges,  hammers,  &c., 
have,  however,  all  been  dealt  with  at  large  in  previous  pages. 
They  contrast  with  the  arms  and  instruments  of  the  preced- 
ing Neolithic  Age  more  by  their  greater  degree  of  perfection  than 
by  their  absolute  number  and  variety.  The  material  progress 
from  one  stage  of  civilisation  to  the  other  was  no  doubt  great, 
but  the  interval  between  the  two  does  not  approach  that  which 
exists  between  Palaeolithic  man  of  the  old  River-drifts  and 
Neolithic  man  of  the  present  configuration  of  the  surface  of 
Western  Europe. 

So  far  as  the  general  interest  attaching  to  the  Bronze  Period 
is  concerned,  it  may  readily  be  conceded  that  it  falls  short  of 
that  with  which  either  of  the  two  stages  of  the  Stone  Period 
which  preceded  it  must  be  regarded.  The  existence  of  numerous 
tribes  of  men  who  are,  or  were  until  lately,  in  the  same  stage  of 
culture  as  the  occupants  of  Europe  during  the  Neolithic  Age, 
affords  various  points  of  comparison  between  ancient  and  modern 
savages  which  are  of  the  highest  interest,  while  there  exists  at  the 
present  day  not  a  single  community  in  which  the  phases  of  the 
Bronze  culture  can  be  observed.  The  Palaeolithic  Age  has,  more- 
over, a  charm  of  mysterious  eld  attaching  to  it  as  connected  with 
the  antiquity  of  the  human  race  which  is  peculiarly  its  own. 

The  Bronze  Age,  nevertheless,  from  its  close  propinquity 
to  the  period  of  written  history,  is  of  the  highest  importance 
to  those  who  would  trace  back  the  course  of  human  progress 
to  its  earliest  phases  ;  and  though  in  this  country  many  of 
the  minute  details  of  the  picture  cannot  be  filled  in,  yet,  taken 
as  a  whole,  the  broad  lines  of  the  development  of  this  stage 
of  civilisation  may  be  as  well  traced  in  Britain  as  in  any  other 
country.  It  has  been  a  pleasure  to  me  to  gather  the  information 
on  which  this  work  is  based ;  and  I  close  these  pages  with  the 
consolatory  thought  that,  dry  as  may  be  their  contents,  they  may 
prove  of  some  value  as  a  hoard  of  collected  facts  for  other  seekers 
after  truth. 

FINIS. 


GENERAL  INDEX. 


Achilles,  shield  of,  12 ;  spear  of,  18,  242 

Addua,  Gauls  defeated  on  the,  374 

Ms  importatum,  414,  419 ;  signatum,  422 

Eschylus  quoted,  n 

^Esculapius,  temple  of,  18 

Estii,  the,  iron  scarce  among,  19 

Ethiopians,  bronze  rare  among,  17 

African  axe  of  iron,  149 ;  ironworkers,  181  ; 
swords,  306  ;  trumpet,  359 

Agamemnon,  breast-plate  of,  12 

Agatharchides  quoted,  8 

Akerman,  J.  Y.,  F.S.A.,  cited,  391,  399 

Alban  necropolis,  341 

Alcinous,  walls  of  palace  of,  bronze-plated,  n 

Algonquins,  fusing  of  copper  among  the,  3 

Alloys,  various,  of  copper  and  tin,  22,  178,  265, 
352,  4i5,  476 

Amber,  beads,  135,  189,  244,  366,  394, 487 ;  buttons 
or  studs,  217;  cup  with  interment,  243,486;  hilts 
or  pommels,  228,  229;  ornaments,  373,  483,  485, 
487 ;  trade  in,  483,  486 

American  tomahawks,  162 

Amulets,  celts  used  as,  134 

Analysis  of  metal  of  caldron,  412 ;  celts,  417,  421 ; 
Indian  celts,  40  ;  chisels,  Mexican  and  Peru- 
vian, 166 ;  shield,  346  ;  solder,  425  ;  trumpets, 
360,  363  ;  various  bronzes,  415  to  422 
aderson,  Mr.  Joseph,  quoted,  239,  290 


Anvils,  180  to  183,  375,  451 
Ariantes,  Scythian  king,  318 
Armillz  and  Armlets.     See  Bracelets 


Arreton  Down  type  of  spear-head,  257,  480 
Arrow-heads,  216,  318,  323  ;   flint,  39,  42,  167,  190, 

223,  226,  236,  318,  391,  487 
Arundelian  marbles,  14 
Aryan  name  for  copper,  10 
Asiatic  origin  of  bronze,  2,  276,  420,  477 
Assyrians,  early  use  of  iron  among,  9  ;  wore  pen- 

annular  bracelets,  383 
Asteropaeus,  breast-plate  of,  13 
Ausonius  quoted,  29 
Awls,   188   to  191 ;  double-pointed,  190  ;  tanged, 

189,  190;  handled,  191;  with  interments,  189, 

190,  191,  225,  241,  319,  392,  437 

Axes,  14,  41,  147  to  156,  161,  162  ;  African  modern 
iron,  149 ;  ceremonial,  450 ;  Egyptian,  147  ; 
Hungarian,  147,  161,  482 ;  clay  mould  for, 
428;  of  copper,  265;  perforated,  161,478,482; 
stone,  190,  226 

Axe-hammers,  of  stone,  217,  224,  225,  243 

Axe-shaped  socketed  celts,  142 

Aymara  Indians,  148 

Aymard,  M.,  collection,  215 

Aztec  chisel,  166 

B 

Banks,  Sir  J.,  quoted,  34,  155 
Banks,  Rev.  S.,  collection,  78,  133 
Barnwell,  Rev.  E.  L.,  quoted,  55,  77 
Barthelerny,  Abbe,  quoted,  20  55 


Bateman  collection,  see  Museums,  Sheffield  ;  Mr., 
quoted,  42,  44,  151,  190,  225,  227,  228,  383,  390, 
392,  393.  402,  4°9 

Battle-axe  of  Menelaus,  14.    See  Axes 

Bayonet-like  blades,  255,  256 

Beads,  393 ;  agate,  383  ;  amber,  135,  189,  244,  366, 
487  ;  bone,  487 ;  bronze,  381,  393  ;  dentalium 
shells,  394 ;  fluted,  381 ;  glass,  134,  366,  394, 
485;  gold,  391,  394  ;  ivory,  485  ;  jet,  118,  158, 
17  ;  joints  of  encrinite,  394 ;  pen- 


15, 391 ;  pottery,  366;  pulley-shaped, 
381 ;  tin,  39^ ;  with  leaf-shaped  projections, 
381 ;  with  spiral  ornaments,  394,  485 

Beck,  Rev.  James,  F.S.A.,  collection,  60,  84,  87 

Beck,  Dr.  L.,  quoted,  15 

Beger  quoted,  28,  29 

Bell  or  rattle  of  bronze,  364 

Bell  collection  in  the  Ant.  Mus.,  Edinburgh,  105 

Bell-metal,  416 

Bells  to  ear-rings,  393 

BENinE,  its  meaning,  7 

Bertrand,  M.  Alexandre,  quoted,  300,  413 

Birch,  Dr.  S.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  9,  147,  374 

Birds  on  rod,  406 

Blackett,  Sir  Edward,  collection,  351 

Blackmore  Museum.    See  Museums,  Salisbury 

Blades,  bayonet-like,  255,  256;  curved,  264;  diffi- 
culty of  determining  character  of,  258,  260 ; 
lance-shaped,  perforated,  213  ;  of  dissimilar 
character,  in  the  same  interment,  241 ;  tanged, 
211,  244 

Blaeuw's  Atlas,  362 

Bloxam,  Mr.  M.  H.,  F.S.A.,  collection,  75,  179 

Boars  found  at  Hounslow,  406 

Bodkin  obsolete  as  weapon,  369 

Bone,  instruments  of,  189,  285,  366 ;  of  Horus,  8  ; 
of  Typhon,  6,  8  ;  plates  for  sword-hilt,  296 ; 
pommels  for  dagger-hilts,  228 ;  rings,  51 

Borlase,  Dr.,  quoted,  30,  32,  439 

Bourgeois,  the  Abbe,  160 

Bouterolle.   See  Chapes 

Boynton,  Mr.  T.,  collection,  327 

Bracelets,  381   to  388 ;  90,  96,  135,  136,  155,  i 


333,    377!    American,    • 
beaded,  385 ;  circular,  38 


beaded,  385 ;  circular,  384 ;  gc 
283,  285  ;  jet,  385  ;  Late  Celt 
looped,  76,  368,  378,  384,  386, 
lar,  381,  382 ;  Scottish,  388,  4 


Assyria 


lan,    ; 
,  180, 


>,  387 ;  penan 

lar,"  381,  382  ;  Scottish,  388,  400;  with  inter- 
ments, 135,  385,  387 

Bracer  of  chlorite  slate,  223 

Brackenridge,  Rev.  G.  W.,  collection,  67 

Brackstone,  Mr.,  collection,  93,  131,  132 

Braybrooke,    Lord,    collection,     211,    398,     403, 
440 

Brent,  Mr.  John,  F.S.A..,  88,  114 

Bridle-bits,  144, 322,  368,  404,  405,  470 

Bristles,  possible  early  use  of,  191 

Britain,  condition  of  its  inhabitants  m  the  Bronze 

Britannic  province  of  bronze  antiquities,  478 
British  types  of  instruments  mostly  indigenous, 
24,  481 


490 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Britons,  ancient,  merely  cut  off  the  ears  of  corn, 
202 ;  used  iron  before  the  Roman  invasion, 
19.  276,  354,  471,  472;  used  no  helmets  in 
time  of  Severus,  355 

Brixen,     ancient     inhabitants    of,     came    from 

Etruria,  355 
Broad  arrow     ornament  on  ring,  158 

Bronze,  analysis  of,  22,  178,  265,  415  to  422 ; 
Asiatic  origin  of,  2,  276,  420,  477 ;  bronze 
burning  on  to,  280,  293,  425 ;  cakes  of,  423  ; 
early  value  of,  17,  177,  204;  brittle  when 
heated,  185,  409;  hardening  of,  u,  12,  178, 
415  ;  lumps  of,  see  Metal ;  moulding  of,  427 
to  470  ;  survival  of  use  of,  18,  22 

Bronze-founders'  hoards,  24,  55,  94,  no,  113,  185, 
361,  422,  423,  440  (see  Hoards) ;  classification 
of.  457.  459;  list?  °(  principal,  460  to  468 

Bronze  Period,  antiquities  of,  divided  into  pro- 
vinces, 477  ;  chronology  of,  455,  456,  472,  473  ; 
condition  of  the  inhabitants  of  Bntain  during 
the,  487  ;  succession  of,  to  Stone  Period,  9, 
40;  succession  of  iron  to,  16,  33,  274,  299, 
300,  471 

Brooches,    135 ;    Late  Celtic,    400 ;    penannular, 

Brooke,  Capt.,  collection,  113,  206 

Buckles,  Late  Celtic,  144,  368,  470';  penannular, 

400 
Bucklers,   303 ;    date  of,    353 ;    not  found    with 

interments,  354  ;  Spanish,  354 


Buttons,  400,  401 ;  annular,  290 ;  bone  or  ivory, 
394;  gold,  394;  jet,  41,  225,  236;  polished 
shale,  230  ;  sandstone,  41 

C 

Cable-pattern,  48,  54,  140 

Caesar,  Julius,  quoted,  19,   354,  414 ;  time  of,  19, 

^  ,  276,  354,  399,  419,  486 

Caldrons,  409  to  413  ;  spheroidal,  481 

Camden's  "  Britannia     quoted,  31,  361 

Canoe,  rapier-blade  found  in,  250 

Caprington  horn,  the,  362 

Carelli  quoted,  283 

Carians  armed  with  bronze,  8 

Carnyx  on  British  coins,  363 

Carter,  Mr.  James,  collection,  80 

Cassiterides  identified  with  Britain,  419 

Casting  from  hafted  celt,  154 ;  from  worn  instru- 
ments, 117,  121,  442,  449 

Castings,  defective,  81,  114,  428,  448;  unfinished, 
84,  90,  115,  175,  328 

Catti,  the,  used  iron,  19 

Caylus,  Count  de,  quoted,  20,  104 

Cazalis  de  Fondouce,  M.,  223 

"  Celestial  iron,"  7 

Celts,asamulets,i34;  analysis  of,40,  417,  421;  cast- 
ing, method  of,  in,  443  ;  casting  from  ready 
mounted,  154  ;  casting  from  worn  specimens, 
117,  121,  442,  449  ;  classification  of,  38 ;  con- 
jectures as  to,  31  to  37;  copper,  2,  39,  40,  43, 
61/145  !  decoration  of,  44  to  49,  52  to  54,  60  to 
63,  102  ;  derivation  of  name,  27  to  29 ;  flint, 
189,  190 ;  gold  (?),  135  ;  gradation  of  types  of, 
35,  7.0,  76,  77,  95,  99,  i°8,  153,  456,  469,  479 ; 
hafting  of,  70,  146  to  164 ;  moulds  for,  136, 

143,  428,  429,  430,  442  to  450 ;  "  recipient "  and 
"  received,"  32,  107,  456 ;  restored  at  edge  by 
hammering,  83,  112,  446,  454;   shortened  by 
wear,  83,87,  112  ;  stone,  40,  150;  superstitious 
reverence  for,   39 ;    supposed    identity  with 
German  framea,  151 ;  tanged,  included  under 
chisals,  38  ;    tinned  appearance   of,  55,  56  ; 
votive,  69,  135,  417  ;   with  interments,  41,  42, 
44,  47,  Si,  134,  MS,  15°,  352 

Celts,  countries  where  found.— Austria,  69,  131, 

144,  157;    Belgium,    116;    Cambodia,    142; 
China,  142;    Cyprus,  40;  Denmark,  40,  52, 
54,  60,  69,  95,  134,  159,  163  ;  Egypt,  142,  147  ; 
Etruria,  39,  132,  156  ;  France,  43,  52,  54,  55, 
77,  109,  no,  115,  119,   121,  122,  129,  131,  142, 


144,  152;  Gaul,  115,  116;  Brittany,  117,  124, 
419,  445,  477  ;  Savoy  Lake-dwellings,  131 ; 
Germany,  43,  52,  77,  109,  112,  116,  133,  142, 
144;  Greece,  69,  160 ;  Holland,  77,  109,  133, 
152 ;  Hungary,  40,  43,  no ;  India,  2,  40 ;  Italy, 
104,  132,  142,  143,  155,  157,  160 ;  Java,  142; 
Jutland,  30  ;  Mexico,  43 ;  Portugal,  143  ; 
Russia,  143;  Siberia,  131,  143;  Spain,  43; 
Sweden,  52,  129,  143 

Celts,  flat. — English,  39  to  48  ;  Scottish,  55  to  59 ; 
Irish,  39,  45,  61  to  65;  copper,  39,  40,  43,  61  ; 
decorated,  44,  49,  58,  59,  62  to  65,  69,  453  ; 
double-ended,  69  ;  doubly  tapering,  44,  49, 
69;  earliest  in  date,  39,  107,  149,  469;  iron, 
157 ;  largest  found  in  Britain,  57 ;  moulds  for, 
430,  428,  438  ;  perforated,  160 

Celts,  flanged. — English,  48  to  55  ;  Scottish,  59  to 
61 ;  Irish,  66  to  68 ;  castings  for,  55  ;  de- 
corated, 48,  53,  54,  58  to  61,  66  to  69 ;  doubly 
tapering,  68,  69  ;  perforated,  59;  roughening 
blade  of,  67;  with  "flanches"  on  face,  60; 
with  stop-ridge,  68,  69,  73,  74,  479 

Celts,  socketed. — English,  107  to  135  ;  87,  93,  94, 
95  ;  Scottish,  135  to  137, 143 ;  Irish,  137  to  142  ; 
apparently  of  German  origin,  483  ;  axe- 
shaped,  142 ;  castings  for,  86 ;  clay  cores 
left  in,  115,  116,  186,  445 ;  of  copper,  145  ; 
"flanches"  on, 60,  107  to  in,  131,480;  of  iron, 
116,  144,  157,  159,  163  ;  of  lead,  445  ;  method 
of  casting,  442  ;  moulds  for,  of  bronze,  438  to 
445  ;  moulds  for,  of  burnt  clay,  450  ;  moulds 
for,  of  stone,  432  ;  origin  of,  107,  483  ;  rarely 
or  never  found  with  interments  in  Britain,  134  ; 
with  looponface,  130;  with  two  loops,  142, 143; 
without  loops,  133,  142,  144 ;  with  ribs  inside 
socket,  109,  no,  in  ;  with  ribs  on  face,  117, 
127,  136,  137,  140 

Celts,  winged. — English,  71  to  77  ;  Scottish,  97  ; 
Irish,  99  to  102 

Celts,  trumpeters  in  army  of,  363 

Celtiberian  method  of  preparing  iron,  275 

"  Celiis"  Roman  pronunciation  of,  29 

Census,  method  of  taking,  318 

Centres  of  manufacture,  independent,  106,  143, 
475 

"  Ceraunius,     40 

Cereals  cultivated  during  the  Stone  Period,  194  ; 
cultivated  during  the  Bronze  Period,  487. 
See  Sickles 

Cesnola,  General  di,  40 

Cetra  in  use  in  Spain  and  Mauretania,  354 

Chabas,  AI.,  quoted,  6,  7 

Chalybes,  the,  17 

Chantre,  M.  Ernest,  quoted,  43,  55,  88,  109,  176, 
183,  184,  202,  297,  358,405,  478,  484  ;  his  classi- 
fication of  hoards,  458 

Chapes,  285,  305  to  307  ;  wooden,  302 

Chariots  of  Early  Iron  Age,  389,  403 

Chierici,  Professor,  quoted,  422 

Chilian  celt  of  copper,  145 

China,  steel  imported  to  Rome  from,  19 

Chinese  antiquarian  work,  263  ;  halberd,  262;  in- 
fluence, 478 ;  spear-heads,  329 

Chisels,  16510  173,  113,  148;  Aztec,  166;  celts  used 


as,  38,  133,  146  ;  Egyptian,  8,  166  ;  flint,  i6s  ; 
narrow,  259;   mould  for, 
172  ;  from  Swiss  Lake-dwe 


, 
keted,  171 


419  ;   socete,  171, 
ellings,  166  ;  tanged, 


Christy  collection,  142 

Chronos,  sickle  of,  15 

Cicero's  facetious  inquiry,  275 

Cimbrians  used  iron,  19 

"  Cire  perdue"  method  of  casting,  427,  449 

"  Clacnan  nathaireach,"  394 

Clasps,  396  ;  or  slides,  308  ;  found  with  celts,  144  ; 

gold,  139 

Clerk,  Baron,  collection,  98,  214,  218 
Clipeus  longer  than  cgtra,  354 
Coins,  British,  118,  134,  181,  354,  363,  399,  470;  of 

Cunobehne,  181,  354;  of  Dubnovellaunus,  181; 

ofEppillus,363;  of  Hadrian,  117  ;  of  gold  and 

silver,   322;    Italian,  283  ;    Roman,  115,   117, 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


491 


363  ;  Spanish,  354  ;  Syracusan,  426 ;  of  Tas- 
ciovanus,  354,  363  ;   ot  Verica,  354,  399  ;   un- 
known in  Bronze  Age,  487 
Collars,  with  beads  strung  on  iron  wire,  381.    See 

Torques 

"  Commander's  staff,"  262 

Commerce  between  Britain  and  the  Mediter- 
ranean countries,  483,  485  ;  of  the  Etruscans, 
413,  476 ;  of  the  Phoenicians,  419,  475,  479 ; 
with  the  East,  413 

Congress  of  Prehistoric  Archaeology,  Buda-Pest, 
180 ;  Stockholm,  288 

Continental  influence  on  British  forms,  106,  143, 
297,  379>  472,  479  to  486 

Cooke  collection,  128 

Cooke,  Mr.  B.,  quoted,  33 

Copper  Age,  in  America,  2  ;  in  Europe,  2 ;  in 
modern  times,  4 

Copper,  bars  of,  424  ;  blades,  265  ;  cakes,  422 ; 
cakes  with  Roman  inscriptions,  423  ;  celts, 
Chilian,  145 ;  celts,  Etruscan,  39 ;  celts, 
Indian,  2 ;  celts,  Irish,  61  ;  early  sources 
of,  8,  14,  418 ;  halberds,  Irish,  265 ;  ingots, 
426;  knives,  Esquimaux,  211  ;  lumps  of 
(see  Metal) ;  native,  3,  418,  4:9  ;  perforated 
axe,  265 ;  punches,  or  sets,  modern,  265  ; 
pyrites,  419  ;  saw  from  Santorin,  184  ; 
smelting  of,  422 

Cord,  traces  of,  on  celt,  160  ;  traces  of,  on  dag- 
ger, 226 

Cores  of  clay  for  bells,  384  ;  extraction  of,  186, 
451  ;  method  of  casting  with,  443  ;  remaining 
in  celts,  115,  116,  186,  445;  wooden  and 
bronze,  445 

Cornwall,  native  copper  in,  419  ;  native  tin  in, 
419 

Cotton,  Charles,  Esq.,  133 

Crannoges,  Irish,  220,  486 

Crawfurd,  Mr.  J.,  quoted,  9 

Crofton  Croker  collection,  131 

Cross-guards  of  daggers  or  knives,  309 

Crotals  or  rattles,  361 

Crowbar,  161 

Crucibles,  probably  of  clay,  427 

Cumae,  Battle  of,  355 

Cuming,  Mr.  Syer,  quoted,  37,  306,  340 

Cunliffe,  Sir  R.  A.,  collection,  55 

Cunnington,  Mr.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  189,  242 

Cunobeline,  hammer  on  coins  of,  181  ;  shields  on 
coins  of,  354 

Cups,  amber,  243,  486  ;  gold,  407  ;  hanging,  408 ; 
with  interments,  189,  190,  226,  239,  243 

Curved  cutting  tools,  180 

D 

Dactyli,  invention  of  metals  ascribed  to,  15 

Daggers,  222  to  247,  254,  256  to  260 ;  Danish,  254  ; 
Egyptian,  254,  420 ;  French,  223,  234,  238, 
243,  254;  German,  246;  Hungarian,  236; 
Irish,  234,  239,  244,  254;  Italian,  236,  241, 
287  ;  methods  of  hafting,  227  to  236  ;  moulds 
for,  Italian,  434  ;  ornamented  on  blade,  234, 
241,  246;  Peruvian  mode  of  holding,  246; 
Scandinavian,  234,  236,  252;  socketed,  260, 
480;  tanged,  222,  223,  224,  254,  258,  259,  260  ; 
tanged,  peculiar  to  Britain,  480 ;  with  stone 
axes  in  interments,  161,  224,  225 

Datmachus  quoted,  17 

Dalmatian  hammer,  183  ;  chisels,  172 

Danubian  province  of  bronze  antiquities,  478,  482 

Darbishire,  Mr.  R.  D.,  F.S.A.,  438 

Davy,  Mr.  H.  A.,  87 

Dawkins,  Prof.  W.  Boyd,  F.R.S.,  475,  477 

Day,  Mr.  R.,  F.S.A.,  collection,  61,  62,  65,  102, 
105,  138,  139,  140,  141,  171,  172,  176,  212,  246, 
259.  293.  3i5.  325,  358 

Delas,  inventor  of  bronze,  according  to  Theo- 
phrastus,  15 

De  fionstetten,  104 

De  Champlain  quoted,  3 

De  Fellenberg  referred  to,  422,  425 


Defoe  quoted,  362 

Dentalium  necklace,  394 

Desor,  Prof.,  collection,  86,  180 

Diadems,  184  ;  Danish  and  German,  394  ;  gold, 

42>  393 

Dickinson,  Mrs.,  collection,  80,  84,  386 
Diodorus  Siculus  quoted,  202,  275,  363,  426 
Dionysius  said  to  nave  struck  coins  of  tin,  426 
Discs  with  concentric  circles,  401  ;   periorated, 

403 

Dolabra,  Roman,  36 
Dolmen,  French,  293 
Donovan's  analysis  of  trumpet,  360 
Douce  and  Meyrick  collection,  109 
Douglas,  "Naenia  Brit.,"  quoted,  34,  233 
Dow,  Rev.  John,  quoted,  35 
"  Dowris  Find,"  golden  lustre  on  articles  from, 


Awls 

"  Druidical  pruning-hook,"  32,  200 
Druid's  altar,  supposed,  114 
Dryden,  Sir  Henry,  collection,  74 
Dubnovellaunus,  hammer  on  coin  of,  181 
Duke,  Rev.  E.,  collection,  166,  377,  385,  393,  432 
Dunoyer,  Mr.  G.  V.,  quoted,  35,  132,  155,  160,  431 
Durden,  Mr.,  collection,  134,  250,  378,  393 
Dusaussoy,  Mr.,  analysis  by,  418 
Dyer,  Mr.  Thiselton,  F.R.S.,  313 


Early  Iron  Age  of  Denmark,  159 ;  hoard  at 
Vimose,  195 ;  interment,  belonging  to,  25 ; 
trumpets  of,  357, 363.  See  also  Hallstatt  and 
Late  Celtic  Period. 

Ear-rings,  391 ;  gold,  393 

Edwards,  Mr.  G.,  C.E.,  368 

Egerton,  Sir  P.  de  M.  G.,  F.R.S.,  collection,  91, 
169,  331,  464 

Egypt,  bronze  as  circulating  medium  in,  8  ;  early 
rarity  of  iron  and  steel  in,  6  ;  early  use  of 
bronze  in,  475  ;  lead  bronze  used  in,  419 

Egyptian  arrow-heads,  leaf-shaped,  318  ;  axes, 
142,  147  ;  celts  with  ears,  147 ;  chisels,  166 ; 
daggers,  234,  254  ;  daggers,  analysis  of,  420 ; 
daggers,  socketed,  261,  480;  hatchet  still 
hafted,  148  ;  hoe-like  instrument,  142 ;  method 
of  fixing  adze  blades,  159  ;  rings,  penannular, 
391 ;  swords,  298  ;  tongs,  185 

Elissa,  bronze  sickle  of,  18,  194 

Enamel  on  bronze  articles,  135  ;  red,  on  shields, 

Encrinite  beads,  394 

Engelbardt,  Mr.  Conrad,  quoted,  159,  164,  195 
Enniskillen,  Earl  of,  F.R.S.,  61,  180,  282 
Ennius,  iron  used  in  Italy  before  the  days  of,  18 
Epaulettes,  originally  intended  for  protection  of 

shoulder,  374 
Esquimaux,  handles  of  instruments,  195  ;  knives 

of  copper,  211 

Etruscan,  celts,  132;  commerce,  413,  476;  gold 
necklaces,  39;  helmets,  355;  influence  on 
form  of  Irish  vases,  412,  476,  481 ;  rings  with 
loops,  400 ;  tomb,  copper  celt  in,  39  ;  urns  at 
Hallstatt,  412 
Euripides  quoted,  16 


Fabrics,  woven,  474 

Fabricius,  T.  A.,  quoted,  151 

Falmouth,  Earl  of,  golden(?)  celt  belonging  to,  135 

Faussett  collection,  129 

Fenton,  Mr.,  223 

Fenton,  Mr.  S.,  306 

Ferris,  Dr.,  348 

Ferrules,  338  to  341,  256,  257,  309,  315,  3'7,  333  ! 
African  celt-like,  340  ;  Danish,  309,  340  ;  flat, 
404 ;  gold,  309,  313  ;  Irish,  340  ;  iron,  341 

"  Ferrum*'  used  for  sword  in  Cesar's  time,  276 

Fibula  of  silver,  155  ;  with  interment,  387,  400 

Fiji,  conch-shell  trumpets  from,  359 

Files,  bronze,  7,  181,  184,  185  ;  iron,  184 


492 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Finds  of  bronze.    See  Hoards  of  Bronze 

Finger-rings,  198,  391 

Fisher,  Mr.  Marshall,  collection,  53,  78,  79,  91, 
121,  248,  254,  272,  282,  286,  322,  328 

Fish-hooks,  192 

Fitch,  Mr.  R.,  F.S.A.,  collection,  52,  114,  120,  282 

Flaminius  Nepos,  374 

"  Flanches"  on  celts,  60,  107  to  in,  131,  480 

Flint,  arrow-heads,  42,  167,  223,  226,  236,  238,  318, 
391 ;  Etruscan,  39 ;  celts,  189,  190 ;  chipped, 
243,  366;  chisels,  165;  flakes,  167,  366;  flakes    i 
used  as  saws,  454  ;  implements,  189,  224,  225  ;    | 
implements,  French,  223  ;  implements,  Irish,    • 
271;  knives,  41,  225,  240;  scraper,  225;  simi- 
larity between   Irish  and  Portuguese   forms,    j 
271 ;  spear-heads,  190, 225  ;  "  strike-a-lights," 

Flowe'r,2Mr.  J.  W.,  F.G.S.,  122,  242,  270 

Forbes,  Mr.  David,  F.R.S.,  148,  165 

Forel,  M.,  collection,  210,  441 

Franks,    Mr.    A.    W.,  F.R.S.,    quoted,  37,    49, 

5i,  135,  199,  257,  299,  302,  330,  353,  363,  404, 

405,  &c. 
Frederick,  Sir  Charles,  257,  260 


Gage,  Mr.,  F.S.A.,  343 

Garrucci,  Padre,  341 

Garthe,  Dr.  Hugo,  collection,  448 

Gastaldi,  Prof.,  202 

Gauls,  gold  torques  among  the,  374  ;  Isumbrian, 
had  iron  swords,  19  ;  of  North  of  France  had 
iron  mines,  9 

Gaulish  reaping  machine,  194  ;  torques  used  for 
trophy,  374 ;  trumpets,  363 

Genthe,  Rector,  quoted,  21 

Geoffrey's  experiments,  12 

Gesenius,  suggestion  of,  5 

Gladstone,  Rt.  Hon.  W.  E.,  quoted,  n,  16 

Glass  beads,  134,  135,  366,  394,  485,  487 

Gold,  bracelets,  180,  209,  283,  285  ;  buttons,  394 ;  I 
clasps,  139,  391 ;  Cornish  celt,  doubtful,  135 ; 
diadems,  42,  393;  ferrules,  309,  313;  fillet, 
239;  mines,  Egyptian,  8;  necklaces,  39;  on 
dagger  hilts,  51,  228,  232 ;  ornaments,  51,  304, 
39ii  393;  Merovingian,  117;  pins  for  inlaying, 
51,  228,  232  ;  plates,  51,  232,  244  ;  plates,  cres- 
cent-shaped, 394 ;  probably  the  first  metal 
used,  418 ;  rings,  389,  390,  393  ;  torques,  90, 
180,  209,  374,  375,  376,  379,  390;  trophy  of 
Gaulish  torques,  374 

Gongora  y  Martinez,  Don  M.,  238 

Goodwin,  Mr.,  347 

Gordon,  Sir  R.,  218,  289,  340,  362 

Gouges,  173  to  177,  319,  320,  336  ;  French,  176 

Gozzadini,  Count,  quoted,  37 

Gray,  Mr.  W.,  collection,  352,  412 

Greece,  early  use  of  iron  in,  14 

Greek  axe,  161 ;  fret  on  Chilian  celts,  145  ;  lan- 
guage, testimony  of,  10 ;  sword,  298  ;  vases, 
representations  on,  340 

Greenwell,  Rev.  Canon,  F.R.S.,  collection,  pas- 
sim; quoted,  37,  41,  151,  224,  227,  387,  389, 
400,  407,  8cc. 

Grimm  quoted  by  M.  Muller,  10 

Grose  quoted,  363 

Gross,  Dr.  Victor,  collection,  114,  176,  183,  195, 
422,  431,  449 

Gudea,  King  of  Assyria,  9 

Gun-metal,  415 

H 

Hafting.  See  Handles  and  Hilts 

Halberds,  261  to  270 ;  Chinese,  263 ;  Irish,  263, 
266,  268 ;  iron,  263 ;  Italian,  480  ;  mode  of 
attachment  to  shaft,  262 ;  rare  in  Britain, 
270 ;  Russian,  263  ;  Scandinavian,  262 ;  Scot- 
tish, 269;  Spanish,  271 

Hallstatt,  23,  25,  69,  144,  181,  184,  229,  288,  293, 
308,  342,  355,  389,  393,  394,  401,  405,  409,  412 


Hammers,  177  to  181  ;  bronze,  81,  94,  319,  442, 
451  ;  in  Bologna  hoard,  180  ;  casting  tor,  361  ; 
clay  mould  for,  450  ;  formed  of  part  of  pal- 
stave, 180;  Hungarian,  180;  Lake-dwellings, 
181  ;  looped,  180  ;  stone,  165  ;  stone  with  inter- 
ment, 51,  232,  353,  405 

Handles  to  celts,  146  to  164  ;  to  celts,  club-like, 

149  ;  to  celts,  elbowed,  146  ;  to  celts,  original, 

150  ;  to  iron  celt,  144,  157  ;  to  Italian  celt,  155  ; 
to  knife,  of  amber,  228  ;  to  stone  celts,  of  stags- 
horn,  150;  to  vessels,  variety  of,  414 

Hare,  remains  of,  at  Barton  Mere,  486 
Harford,  Mr.  E.  J.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  34 
Harland,  Mr.  H.  S.,  118,  226 
"  Has  to.  Pura,"  218 
Hatchets,  iron,  148 
Hearne,  quoted,  31 

Hector,  gold-  ringed  spear-head  of,  313 
Helmets,  bronze,  355  ;  Late  Celtic,  356 
Herodian  quoted,  355 
Herodotus  quoted,  17 
Hesiod  quoted,  16,  17 
Hiero,  Tyrant  of  Syracuse,  355 
Hieroglyphic  inscriptions  on  axes,  147 
Hildebrand,  Dr.  Hans,  quoted,  21 
Hilts  of  daggers,  229  to  236  ;  of  rapiers,  252  to 
56  ;  of  swords,  286  to  300  ;   proportional  to 
lades,  277  ;    made  of  amber,  228  ;   made  of 
ivory,  inlaid  with  amber,  299;  made  of  ox- 
horn,  252;  inlaid,  of  dagger,  352 
Hoards  of  Bronze— 

Abergele,  144,  308,  404,  405,  471 

Achtertyre,  136,  315,  382,  425,  468 

Allhallows,  Hoo,  214,  230,  467 

Alnwick,  43,  113,  285,  321,  391,  465 

Ambleside,  285,  465 


256  ; 
blad 


Amiens,  52,  157,  176,  201,  206,  249,  371,  398 
Vrreton  Down, 
473,  480 


49,  243,  244,  257,  258,  260,  464, 


ngton,  78,  118,  466 
Battleleld,  43,  86,  405,  464 
Beachy  Head,  94,  283,  423,  467 
Beacon  Hill,  43,  174,  321,  466 
Beddington,  no,  174,  320,  340,  423,  447,  468 
Bernay,  77,  78,  79 
Bilton,  113,  129,  282,  314,  320,  465 
Blackmoor,  464 
Bloody  Pool,  338,  339,  465 
Bo  Island,  180,  292,  466 
Bologna,  104,  143,  172,  173,  176,  180,  183,  184, 

185,  210,  217,  288,  341,  448,  480 
Brechm,  290,  465 

Broadward,  168,  285,  319,  320,  336,  338,  397,  465 
Broxton,  91,  169,  331,  464 
Burgesses'  Meadow,  Oxford,  81,  169,  179,  467 
Burwell  Fen,  467 
Camenz,  202,  384,  390,  459 
Carlton  Rode,  78,  94,  113,  119,  121,  122,  133,  167, 


^-.., 

Chnshall,  117,  283,  465 

Clare,  Postlingford  Hall,  48,  464 

Cleveland,  447,  468 

Corsbie  Moss,  290,  464 

Cumberlow,  04,  no,  134,  424,  467 

Danesbury,  423,  468 

Downs,  176,  179,  211,  220,  293,  335,  360,  361,  410, 

411,  412,  452,  468 
Dreuil,  109,  no,  129,  144,  176,  208,  283,  370,  393, 

403,  404,  405 

Duddingston  Loch,  289,  315,  335,  409,  424,  465 
Dunbar,  220,  465 

Earsley  Common,  113,  134,  424,  468 
Eaton,  447,  468 
Ebnall,  167,  174,  187,  466 
Edington  Burtle,   197,  249,  320,  325,  330,  377, 

385,  39i,  464 
Exnmg,  174,  394,  466 
Flixborough,  465 

Fresne  la  Mere,  180,  183,  189,  209,  375 
Fulbourn,  279,  282,  320,  340,  464 
Glancych,  285,  304,  315,  340,  389,  461 
Greensborough  Farm,  Shenstone,  285,  465 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


493 


Guilsfield,  87,  114,  174,  285,  302,  315,  336,  339, 

424,  467 

Hagbourn  Hill,  144,  322,  368,  466,  470,  471 
Harty,  Isle  of,  no,  in,  174,  177,  181,  186,  211, 

214,  308,  403,  441,  442,  453,  457,  468 
Haxey,  89,  129,  465 
Haynes'  Hill,  297,  305,  320,  403,  467 
Heathery  Burn  Cave,  no,  118,  166,  172,  175, 

185,  206,  211,  219,  285,  314,  365,  372,  381,  386, 

388,  391,  401,  402,  412,  424,  447,  451,  468 
Helsdon  Hall,  424,  467 
High  Roding,  109, 116,  424,  468 
Hollingbury  Hill,  76,  115,  378,  386,  390,  464 
Hotham  Carr,  84,  92,  440,  468 
Hounslow,  128,  175,  210,  451,  466 
Hundred  of  Hoo,  95,  460 
Kenidjack  Cliff,  95,  119,  423,  451,  467 
Kensington,  158,  174,  401,  424,  450,  467 
Kingston  Hill,  126,  423,  467 
Lamballe,  116 

Lanant,  206,  285,  340,  423,  451,  467 
Larnaud,   Fonderie  de,  68,  131,  167,  176,  184, 

192,  448,  456 

Little  Wenlock,  113,  234,  314,  336,  452,  465 
Llandysilio,  93,  119,  206,  465 
Llangwyllog,  81,  192,  219,  387,  389,  400,  466 
Longy  Common,  321,  467 
Maentwrog,  248,  328,  465 
Harden,  198,  208,  211,  308,  366,  381,  388,  450, 

45i,  467 

Martlesham,  113,  119,  120,  129,  174,  206,424,467 
Mawgan,  116,  184,  250,  465 
Melbourn,  174,  389,  397,  466 
Meldreth,  172,  201,  411,  424,  466 
Moussaye,  115,  116,  445,  477 
Nettleham,  86,  92,  131,  314,  330,  395,  465 
Newark,  118,  316,  402,  466 
Nottingham,  93,  118,  317,  322,  339,  465 
Panfield,  468 

Pant-y-maen.    See  Glancych 
Pierre  du  Villain,  214,  279,  397 
Plenee-  Jugon.    See  Moussaye 
Plymstock,  50,  165,  241,  259,  464 
Point  of  Sleat,  289,  315,  372, 465 
Porkington,  168,  174,  466 
Quantock  Hills,  77,  377,  447,  464 
Reach  Fen,  79,  112,  118,  122,  133,  167,  174,  187, 

205,  210,  211,  213,  216,  229,  283,  305,  314,  315, 

317,  3i9,  396,  400,  467 
Reepham,  466 
Rhosnesney,  55,  90,  226,  464 
Romford,  86,  172,  424,  467 
Roseberry  Topping,  129,  172,  174,  178,  397,  424, 

468 

St.  Hilary,  285,  423,  467 
Shenstone,  285,  465 
Sittingbourne,  113,  174,  424,  467 
Stanhope,  118,  129,  174,  179,  315,  403,  466 
Stibbard,  84,  328,  457,  464 
Stoke  Perry,  270,  282,  305,  314,  465 
Tarves,  290,  372,  465 
Taunton,  116,  178, 198,  218,  367,  389,  466 
Thorndon,  174,  177,  189,  205,  319,  466 
Thrunton  Farm,  Whittingham,  280, 288,  314, 335, 

To4urs,448 

Trillick,  180,  389,  399,  466 

Ty-Mawr,  129,  168,  315,  381,  3«9,  4°6 

Viraose,  159,  195 

Wallingford,  87,  128,  167,  206,  219,  321,  457,  466 

Wallington,  89,  333,  382,  465 

Wandle  River,  282,  316,  368,  465 

Wedmore,  376,  378,  466 

West  Buckland,  96,  377,  386,  464 

„      Halton,  113,  118,  120,  424,  467 
Westow,  85,  118,  130,  168,  172,  174,  388,  450,  467 
Westwick  Row,  112,  424,  468 
Weymouth,  279,  313,  419,  464 
Whittlesea,  131,  175,  179,  46° 
Wick  Park,  120,  304,  423,  450,  467 
Wicken  Fen,  76,  199,  205,  287,  464 
Wickham  Park,  95,  340,  423,  448,  468 


Wilmington,  87,  447,  468 
Winmarleigh,  118,  314,  335,  466 


,        , 

Woolmer  Forest,  378,  383,  390,  464 
Worth,  254,  313,  402,  464 
Worthing,  87,  423,  467 
Wrekin  Tenement,  285,  338,  465 
Wymin 
Yatten 
Hoare, 


mington,  113,  466 
tendon,  169,  403,  466 
,  Sir  Richard  Colt,  quoted,  34,  44,  51,  r34, 

163,   190,    232,    241,  242,    352,   369,   405,   and 

passim 

Hodgson,  Rev.  John,  quoted,  35 
Holmes,  Mr.  J./collection,  201:328 
Homer,   bronze    or  copper?  mentioned  by,  n  ; 

mentions  tin,  12  ;  other  metals,  13 
Homeric  Age   16,  18,  161,  242,  3^,  340 
Hones.    See  Whetstones 
Hood,  Sir  A.  A.,  Bart.,  collection,  119 
Hoops,  402 

Horns,  curved,  found  in  Denmark,  363 
Horn,  the  Caprington,  362 
Horn,  used,  225,  226,  227,  252,  487 
Horse-trappings,  396 
Hostmann,  Dr.,  quoted,  21 
Hugo,  Rev.  T.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  36 
Hugo  collection,  65,  104,  105,  284 
Hungary,  native  copper  in,  419 
Hungarian  province  of  bronze  antiquities,  482 
Hutchms,  Mr.,  quoted,  94 


Imitation  rivets,  235,  257,  260,  344 

Inlaying  of  metals,  13,  296,  297 ;  wood  and  amber, 

51,  228,  232,  368,  487 
Instruments,  broken,  converted  into  another  form, 

180,  211,  361,  454;    tanged,   of  earlier  date 

than  socketed,  456 
Intercourse  between  Britain  and  the  Continent, 

I06>    143,    162,   379,    413,  483;    Ireland  and 

Spam,  271 
Interments,  41,  42,  237,  238,  239 ;  burnt,  51,  96, 

189,  190,  224,  226,  233,  241,  242,  243,  366,  384, 
394,   474,  485 ;   contracted,  44,  51,   134,   190, 
223,  244,  380 ;  comparison  ot  size  of  men  of 
the  Stone  and  Bronze  Periods,  277  ;  in  a  hide, 
with  fern  leaves,  225 ;    in  wooden  cist,  241 ; 
Late  Celtic,  23,  391 ;  with  beads,  135,  366,  394  ; 
with  bracelets,  135,  385,  387  ;  with  awls,  189, 
190,191,  225,  241,  319,  392, '457;   with  axes, 

190,  226;  with  celts,  41,  42,  44,  47,  51,  134, 
145,  150,  352 ;  with  stone  hatchets,  204  ;  with 
stone  hammers,  51,  232,  353,  405  ;  with  knife 
daggers,  41,  161,  204,  225,  226,  256,  367,  480 ; 
with    marine  shells,    189,  394 ;    tree-burials, 
190,  226,  228,  241,   243,   301,   367,   474  ;   um- 
bunals,  42,   190,  191,  217,  226,  234,  384,  391  ; 
at  Hallstatt,  412  ;  various  modes  of,  473 

lonians  armed  with  bronze,  8 

Ireland,  use  of  iron  probably  later  than  in  Britain, 
471 ;  never  occupied  by  the  Romans,  276 

Iron,  ancient,  preservation  of,  25  ;  approximate 
date  of  introduction  into  Britain,  472  ;  "  Ce- 
lestial," 7;  celts,  116,  144,  157,  159,  163; 
Celtiberian  method  of  tempering,  275 ;  col- 
lars and  belts,  355  ;  currency,  17  ;  date  of 
discovery  of,  from  the  Arundelian  "marbles, 
14 ;  effects  of  long  burying,  275  ;  files,  184 ; 
forms  copied  from  bronze,  23,  95,  144,  299; 
hatchet  from  Bolivia,  148 ;  meteoric  origin 
of,  7;  mines  in  France,  19;  probably  un- 
known till  after  the  separation  of  Aryan 
nations,  10;  pyrites  in  urn,  243,  with  inter- 
ment, 225,  for  obtaining  fire,  487  ;  religious 
avoidance  of,  in  Egypt,  6  ;  self-fused  mass  of, 
15  ;  succession  of,  to  bronze,  4,  6,  16,  22,  23  ; 
spear-heads,  342 ;  swords,  19,  274,  275,  276 ; 
280,  287,  297,  299,  300,  343,  354;  used  in 
Britain  before  Roman  invasion,  19,  276,  354, 
471,  472  ;  used  by  the  Catti,  19  ;  used  by  the 
Gauls,  19 ;  used  in  ancient  Greece,  14,  15 ; 
used  in  Italy,  19 


494 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Italian,  coins  with  type  of  sword,  283  ;  origin  sug- 
gested for  Northern  bronze  antiquities,  21 

Ivory,  bracelets,  485  ;  buttons,  394,  485  ;  dagger 
handles,  233  ;  exported  from  Gaul  to  Britain, 
486 ;  hilts  to  iron  swords,  229 ;  hooks,  485  ; 
nippers,  233  ;  pieces  of,  with  bronze  rivets, 
241;  pins,  51,  233,  241,  485  ;  rings,  Egyptian, 
391  ;  tweezers,  241  ;  war  trumpets,  African, 
359 


James,  Sir  Henry,  F.R.S.,  quoted,  426 

Japanese  sabres,  275 

Java,  socketed  celt  from,  142 

"Javelin  with  loop,"  256 

Jeffrey,  Mr.,  F.S.A.Scot.,  351 

Jerome,  St.,  quoted,  27,  28 

Jet,  beads,  118,  158,  189,  336,394;  Buttons,  225, 

236 ;  discs,   190 ;  loops,  308 ;  necklaces,   189, 

190,  487  ;  ornaments,  485  ;  pendant,  190 ;  used 

for  decorations,  373 
Jets  and  runners,  450 

Jewitt,  Mr.  Llewellynn,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  44,  453 
Job,  book  of,  quoted,  5  ;   translation  of,  by  St. 

Jerome,  27 

Tones,  Hon.  Col.  C.  C.,  quoted,  3 
Jutland,  flat  celts  in,  30 


Keller,  Dr.  F.,  quoted,  150,  195 

Kendrick,  James,  M.D.,  46,  158 

Kirwan,  Rev.  R.,  134, 224 

Klemm,  Dr.,  cited,  153 

Knife-daggers,  antiquity  of,  222,  457  ;  associated 
with  stone  implements  (see  Stone  and  Bronze 
together) ;  attached  to  haft  by  perishable 
rivets,  226;  ornamented,  212,  237;  perforated, 
225  ;  Scottish,  238  ;  short  and  broad,  240  ; 
Spanish,  238 ;  with  handle  of  yew,  207  ;  with 
haft  of  ox-horn,  225  ;  with  interments,  41,  161, 
204,  205,  226,  256,  367,  480 

Knives,  204  to  216 ;  flint,  41 ;  flint  with  inter- 
ment, 225,  240 

Knives,  socketed,  curved,  204,  205,  209  ;  double- 
edged,  205  to  208,  167,  216,  480 ;  Irish,  207  ; 
looped,  210,  215  ;  moulds  for,  449 ;  with  fluted 
blade,  205 

Knives,  tanged,  211  to  216 ;  curved,  209,  214,  215  ; 
Danish  and  German,  215  ;  made  from  broken 
swords,  2ii ;  moulds  for,  433;  perforated,  213, 
215  ;  single-edged,  214,  215,  480;  tang  ending 
in  head  of  animal,  213  ;  tangs  flat,  211,  212  ; 
with  rings  on  blade,  215 

Koudourmapouk,  King  of  the  Soumirs  and  Ac- 
cads,  9 


Laconia,  steel  of,  17 
Lake-dwellers  probably  cut  straw, 


, 

Lake-dwellings  of  Savoy,  95,  131,  191,  371;    of 
Switzerland,  13,95,  "4,  37°;  insight  in 
civilisation  given  by,  4 


to  early 


Lake  Superior,  native  copper  found  near,  3,  418 
Lance-head,  368 

Lane  Fox,  Gen.  A.    See  Pitt-Rivers,  Gen.  A. 
LateCeltic  Period.—  Arrow-heads,  318;  bridle-bits, 

144,  368,   405,  470;    bracelets,  135,  387,  388; 

brooches,  400;  buckles,  144,  368,  470;  celts, 

*?7>  I44»  157,  163;    chariots,  389,  403;    ear- 

pugs,  393  ;  ferrules,  Irish,  340  ;  helmet,  356  ; 

interments,  23,  25,  135,  471  ;  pins,  144,  369  ; 

remains,   135,   144,   385;   sheaths,    302,    308; 

shield,   353  ;    spear-heads,   144,  342  ;    swords, 

229,  275,  299,  343  ;  torques,  381  ;  trumpets,  362  ; 

vessel  with  iron  handle,  409 
Lauth,  Prof.,  quoted,  7 
Laveissiere,  Messrs.,  gun-metal,  416 
Lawrence,  Mr.  W.  L.,  F.S.A.,  45 
Layton,  Mr.  T.,  F.S.A.,  callection,  52,  126,  284, 

302 


Lead,  absent  in  early  bronze,  417  ;  at  butt-end  of 
palstave,  97  ;  socketed  celts,  made  of,  445  ;  in 
small  socketed  celts,  from  Brittany,  417  ;  in 
articles  from  Dowris,  360  ;  spoken  of  by  Job,  5 

Lead  bronze  used  in  Egypt,  419 

Leather  sheath  for  flint  dagger,  309  ;  for  bronze 
knives,  309  ;  for  Scandinavian  dagger,  252  ; 
thongs  for  securing  hatchet,  148 

Leland  quoted,  30 

Lepsius  quoted,  7 

Lichas  the  Lacedemonian,  18 

Lichfield,  Mr.,  collection,  94,  127 

Lindenschmit,  Dr.  Ludwig,  quoted,  21,  81,  202 

Lisch,  Dr.  F.,  quoted,  151,  262 

Livy  quoted,  354 

Local  peculiarities  of  bronze  antiquities,  24,  477 

Londesborough,  Lord,  collection,  345 

"  Long  Barrow  "  period,  skeletons  of,  277 

Loops  or  slides,  403  ;  of  jet,  404 

Lort,  Rev.  Mr.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  31,  33,  439 

Lovelace,  Earl  of,  245,  316 

Lubbock,  Sir  John,  F.R.S.,  quoted,  20,  37,  149, 
157.  274,  276,  427,  475 

Lucretius  quoted,  16 

Lukis,  Rev.  W.  C.,  F.S.A.,  181,  385 

"  Lurer,"  or  curved  horns  found  in  Denmark,  363 

Lusitanians,  bronze  spears  among  the,  17 

Lycurgus,  iron  currency  in  time  of,  17 

Lydia,  steel  of,  17 

M 
Macadam,  Dr.  Stevenson,  quoted,  56,  362,  410, 


,  Mr.  W.  T.,  quoted,  349 
Maces,  271,  272  ;  perforated  stone,  51 
Macrobius  quoted,  275 
Madsen  quoted,  52,  54,  288,  404 
Magnentius,  bronze  swords  attributed  to  time  of, 

Malacca  the  principal  Eastern  source  of  tin,  424 

"  Malga,"  Australian  wooden  weapon,  263 

Manetho  quoted  by  Plutarch,  8 

Manillas,  or  African  ring  money,  387 

Manlia  Gens,  denarii  of,  374 

Mariette,  M.,  quoted,  6 

Marine  shells  with  interments,  189,  394 

Martineau  and  Smith  quoted,  415 

Masons  of  Peru  still  use  stone  pebbles  as  mallets, 

165 

Massagetae  a  bronze-using  people,  17 
Mayer  collection.    See  Museums,  Liverpool 
Medea,  bronze  sickle  of,  18,  194 
Medhurst,  Mr.,  collection,  127 
Medicinal    use    of   iron   in    ancient  Egypt,   6  ; 

"  virtue  in  brass,"  31 
Mediterranean   province    of   bronze  antiquities, 

478 

Memnon,  sword  of,  18 
Menelaus,  battle-axe  of,  14 
Meriones,  arrow  of,  18 
Merovingian  gold  ornaments,  117 
Metals,  415  to  426  ;  admixture  of  other  than  'cop- 

per and  tin   in  bronze,  346,  360,  417,  420  ; 

early  use  of,  i  to  20,  418,  420  ;  lumps  of,  81, 

87,  94,  "3,  "9,  120,  283,  423,425,  442,  449,  459, 

469 

Meteoric  origin  of  first-known  iron,  7,  15 
Mexican,  bronze,  4  ;  name  for  copper  transferred 

to  iron,  10 
Meyrick  collection,  109,  205,   271,  351,  356;   Sir 

Samuel,  quoted,  155 
Milles,  Rev.  Dr.,  collection,  48 
"Minds,"  Irish,  42,  394 
Mines,  Egyptian  gold,  8 
Minerva,  Temple  of,  at  Phaselis,  18 
"  Missile  hatchets,"  162 
Mitchell,  Dr.  Arthur,  F.S.A.  Scot.,  437 
Molyneux,  Sir  T.,  quoted,  358 
Money,  suggestion  that  celts  served  as,  17 
Montelius,  Dr.  O.,  quoted,  109,  26?,  288,  298 
Montezuma  II.,  axe  of,  148 
Morlot,  M.,  quoted,  26 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


495 


"  Morning  Star,"  or  flail,  271   ' 
Mortillet,  M.  Gabriel  de,  405,  456,  457 
Mortimer,  Messrs. .collection, 43,  113,190,227,  230 
Mortise  and  tenon,  171 
Moseley,  H.  N.,  F.R.S.,  263 

Moulds,  427  to  450  ;  bronze,  84,  174,  438  to  448  ; 
clay,  427,  428,  448,  449 ;  clay,  for  buttons,  401 ; 
stone,  143,  158,  180,  250,  428  to  438  ;  notches 
on,  436  ;  wooden,  for  British  coins  of  tin,  445    i 
Movers,  Prof./quoted,  5 
Miiller,  Prof.  Max,  quoted,  10 
Miiller,  Dr.  Sophus,  quoted,  21 
Museums — 

Abbeville,  335 

Agram,  177 

Alnwick  Castle,  46,  116,  285,  287,  368,  386 

Amiens,  119,  183,  201,  206,  208,  371,  398 

Assen,  109 

Belfast,  430 

Berlin,  39,  173,   184,  234,  262,  263,  298,  299,  441, 

Boulaq,  261 

Boulogne,  238,  250 

Bourges,  307 

Bristol,  217 

Brunswick,  288 

Buda-Pest,  142,  327 

Caen,  86 

Cambridge  Ant.  Soc.,  174,  199,  205,  259,  270, 

fji,  272,  279, 
Carcassonne,  3 
Chambery,  131,  184 
Chateaudun,  122 

Clermont-Ferrand,  119,  176,  341,  438 
Copenhagen,  of  Northern  Antiquities,  172,  259, 

288,  353,  432,  441 

Cracow,  Academy  of  Sciences,  181 
Darmstadt,  91,  441 
Devizes,  see  Stourhead 
Dorchester,  432 
Dover,  113 

Dresden,  Preusker  collection,  437 
Dublin,  Royal  Irish  Academy,  passim  ;  Trinity 

College,  220,  431 

Edinburgh,  Ant.,  passim;  Advoc.  Library,  289 
Elgin,  333 
Evreux,  77 
Exeter,  51 
Florence,  156 
Geneva,  210 
Gottingen,  77 
Gratz,  Johanneum,  288 
Hanover,  184,  308,  441 
Kiel,  262 

Laibach,  246,  393, 428 
Lausanne,  260 

Leipsig,  Deutsche  Gesellschaft,  221 
Le  Puy,  293 
Lewes,  87,  447 

l.eyden,  89,  133,  173,  176,  221    • 
Linz,  153 
Liverpool,  Mayer    collection,  52,   81,    82,   83, 

88,  129,  168,  319,  351 
London,  British  Museum,  pas. 

49,  90,  125,  348,  and  passim 
Lyons,  131,  301,  441 
Madrid,  97 
Malmoe,  262 
Metz,  131 

Modena,  Museo  Civico,  401,  437 
Munich,  445 
Namur,  109 

Nantes,  121,  124,  230,  250,  252,  281,  339 
Narbonne,  43,  121,  122,  172,  254,  341 
Newcastle-on-Tyne,  78,  116,  125,  285,  351 
Norwich,  78,  80,  134,  i?3,  175,  178,  199,  281,  318 
Oxford,  287  ;  Ashmolean,  81,  169,  189,  216,  225 
Paris,   d'Artillerie,    301;     Hotel   Cluny,    176; 

Louvre,  185 

Plymouth,  Athenaeum,  228 
Poitiers,  119,  176,  214,  221,  398,  44i,  447 
Prague,  308 


boc.  Ant., 


Rennes.  287 

St.  Germain,  171,  248,  293,  328,  448 

St.  Omer,  131 

Salisbury,  Blackmore,  80,  81,  91,  no,  114,  120, 

132,  175,  256,  237,  248,  426 
Salzburg,  152,  355 
Scarborough,  211,  401 
Schwerin,  262 
Sheffield,  Bateman  collection,  42,  44,  113,  172, 

150,  168,  172,  190,  205,  225,  279,  280,  307,  321, 

327,  390,  392,  393,  409,  430,  447 
Sigmaringen,  173,  176 
Soissons,  80 

Stockholm,  122,  143,  353,  448 
Stourhead,  219,  322,  368,  and  passim 
Stuttgart,  Cabinet  of  Coins,  142 
Taunton,  119,  198,  249,  320,  325,  328,  330 
Toulouse,  41,  97,  119,  122,  131 
Tours,  86,  172,  207,  254,  401,  435 
1  rent,  107 

Turin,  Royal  Armoury,  288 
Vannes,  215,  449 

Vienna,  Ambras,    148;   Antiken   Cabinet,   86, 
,  131,.  299,  355 
VVarnngton,  123,  335 
Wisbech,  131,  175,  179 
Wurzburg,  308 

"  Museum  Moscardi,"  quoted,  31 

N 

Nail  for  fastening  scabbard  end,  305 
Native  copper,  3,  418,  419 
Neb,  projecting,  on  celts,  104,  160 
Necklaces,  amber,  244, 487;  bone, 487 ;  of  dentalium 

shells,  394  ;  of  glass  beads.  135 ;  jet,  189,  190, 

487 

Necropolis,  Alban,  341 
Needle  of  bronze,  192  ;  wood,  226 
Neolithic  Period,  gouges  developed  in,  165 
Neville,  Mr.  F.,  quoted,  358 
Nickel  present  in  bronze  of  shield,  346 
Nilsson,  Prof.,  419 
Nitzsch  quoted,  14 
Noricum,  iron  swords  of,  19 
Norris,  Mr.,  collection,  96 
Northumberland,  Duke  of,  collection,  46,  116 
Norway,  native  copper  in,  419 
Noulet,  Dr.,  142 

O 

Objects  of  uncertain  use,  306,  308,  396,  397,  405 

Obsidian  instruments  from  Santorin,  184 

Odyssey,   description  of  hardening  axe  in,  14  ; 
testimony  of,  as  to  axe- heads,  161 

O'Gorman,  Mr.  T.,  quoted,  398 

Oppert,  M.,  referred  to,  9 

Orestes,  bones  of,  18 

Origin  of  term  celt,  27  ;  of  term  palstave,  71,  72; 
continental,  of  British  bronze  forms,  108,  115, 
143,  297,  379 

Ormerod,  Mr.  G.  W.,  F.G.S.,  collection,  82 

Ornaments,  374  10395,  481,  483  to  486;  bronze, 
rare  in  Britain,  395,  481,  487 ;  gold,  51,  304, 
391,  393,  487 :  for  horse-trappings,  404 ;  sil- 
ver, 2 

Ornamentation  on  bronze,  preserved  by  patina, 
46 ;  cable  pattern,  54,  60,  140 ;  chevron  pat- 
terns, 90,  145,  160,  180,  320,  321,  330,  338  ;  by 
enamel,  135,  338 ;  fern-leaf  pattern,  61,  102  ; 
Greek  fret,  145  ;  by  inlaying  of  metals,  13, 
296,  297 ;  by  hatched  lozenges,  53,  66,  218  ;  by 
punching,  67,  187,  319,  453 ;  by  matted  pat- 
terns, 53,  74;  resembling  Roman  numerals, 
203  ;  rings,  296 ;  rings  concentric,  on  shields, 
347  to  353  ;  ring  and  pellet,  124  et  segg- ; 
shield-shaped,  128  ;  on  back  of  Swiss  Lake 
knives,  203 

Osteological  observations,  278,  475 
Overlapping  of  Stone  and  Bronze  Periods,  i,  24 
Owen,  Prof.,  F.R.S.,  cited,  296 


496 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


Paalstab,  the  term,  71,  72 

Palafitta  of  Castione,  153 

Palstaves,  70  to  106, 159,  169 ;  broken,  with  broken 
torques,  378 ;  castings  for,  go,  448  ;  Danish, 
95,  151,  163  ;  development  of,  from  flat  celts, 
107,  472 ;  double-looped,  95  to  97,  104,  105  ; 
edge  renewed  by  hammering,  92, 454 ;  French, 
81,  88,  91,  97,  160;  German,  80,  83,  91;  Ice- 
landic, 71 ;  Irish,  81,  99  to  105,  160;  iron,  157, 
159;  looped,  80,  98, 103;  moulds  for,  431,  439, 
440 ;  of  two  metals  from  Hallstatt,  95  ;  origin 
of  term,  71 ;  roughening  blade  of,  77 ; 
Scottish,  77  to  79,  99 ;  socketed  celts  evolved 
from,  108,  472 ;  Spanish,  90,  97,  161 ;  transi- 
tional forms  between  celts  and,  76,  77,  95, 
472  ;  with  ridges  on  recesses  for  handle,  79  ; 
with  transverse  edge,  85,  105,  159;  with 
socket  formed  by  wings,  85 ;  worn  by  re- 
sharpening,  83,  87,  454 

Paris  Exhibition  of  1878,  97,  448 

Patina,  preservation  of  ornament  by,  46 

Patrick,  Mr.  R.  W.  Cochran,:F.S.A.,  362 

Patroclus,  funeral  games  of,  15 

Pausanias,  quoted,  15,  18 

Payne-Knignt  collection,  94 

Pegge,  Rev.  Samuel,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  33,  42,  226 

Pelhgot,  Prof.,  analysis  of  Breton  celts,  417 

Pelta  or  buckler  of  Greeks  and  Macedonians,  354 

Penguilly  1'Haridon,  M.,  quoted,  162 

Pennant's  "Tour"  quoted,  200 

Pentateuch,  mention  of  metals  in,  5 

Percy,   Dr.  J.,  F.R.S.,  quoted,  II,  40,  420,  424, 

Perthes,  Boucher  de,  collection,  3.15 

Peru,  bronze  in,  4 ;  use  of  stone  mallets  in,  165 

Peruvian  mode  of  holding  dagger,  246 

Pest,  Congress  of  Prehistoric  Archaeology  at, 
180 

Petrie  collection,  140 

Phillips,  Mr.  J.  A.,  F.G.S.,  422,426 

Philology,  testimony  of,  9,  no 

Philoxenus  quoted,  168 

Phoenician  trade  with  Britain,  419,  475,  470 

Pins,  365  to 373!  134.  135,  I9i,  282,  290,  322; 
associated  with  swords,  290,  372 ;  bone,  with 
Roman  remains,  365  ;  curved,  368 ;  Danish, 
gold-plated,  372 ;  French,  370  ;  German,  371 ; 
gold,  for  inlaying,  51,  228,  232 ;  Irish,  369,  371, 
372  ;  Late  Celtic,  368,  369  ;  looped,  368,  369  ; 
Scottish,  372 ;  spiral,  370 ;  Swiss,  370 ; 
twisted,  191,  366;  with  amber  inlaid,  368; 
with  annular  heads,  367 ;  with  flat  heads, 
290,  365,  371 ;  with  perforated  heads,  96 

Pindar  quoted,  17 

Pipe  of  bone,  366 

Pisander,  axe  of,  18 

Pitt-Rivers,  Gen.  A.,  F.R.S.,  37,  84,  205,  313,  328, 

Plates, 'conical,  with  central  hole,  316;  convex, 

351 ;  with  rims,  402 ;  flat,  402 ;  gold,  articles 

made  of,  244 ;  gold,  lozenge-shaped,  51,  232 ; 

horse-shoe  shaped,  405 ;  with   lunate  open- 
Pliny  quoted,  18, 19,  194,  355 
Plot,  Dr.,  quoted,  31,  42,133 
Plutarch  quoted,  19 

Pollux,  Julius,  mentions  currier's  chisel,  168 
Polybius  quoted,  275,  363 
Pommels,  of  dagger  hilts,  229 ;    to  iron  sword, 

229 ;    object  like,  with   links  of  chain,  296 ; 

cast  on  core  of  clay,  290 ;  to  Scottish  swords, 

290 

Porsena,  articles  of  peace  tendered  by,  18 
Poseidon,  trident  of,  15 
Poste,  Mr.  Beale,  quoted,  308 
Pottery,  from  barrows,  407 ;  of  Bronze  Age,  407, 

487  ;  from  Swiss  Lake-dwellings,  13 
Pownall,  Governor,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  203 
Preservation  of  iron,  25 
Prickers  of  bronze  for  extracting  clay  cores,  186. 

See  Awls 


Prigg,  Mr.  H.,  quoted,  187  ;  collection,  127 
Proportion  between  size  of  tool  and  handle,  277 
Proximity  of  objects  no  proof  of  identity  of  date, 

25,  117,  273,  470 

Psammetichus,  brazen  helmet  of,  8 
Punches,  used  in  ornamenting,  67,  68,   187,  188, 

453  ;  serrated,  319,  320 
Punic  War,  Second,  19,  275 
Pyramid,  Great,  iron  wedge  found  in,  7 
Pyrites,  iron,  225,  243,  487 ;  copper,  419 


Queen  Aah-Hotep,  axe  found  in  tomb  of,  148 
Queen's  Drive,  Edinburgh,  swords  found  at,  28 
"  Quincussis,"  283 


Rabat,  M.,  collection,  180,  368 
Rameses  III.,  tomb  of,  7 
Ramsauer,  Herr,  157 
Ramses,  the  name  on  Egyptian  axe,  147 
Rapier-shaped    blades,    245    to    254,    328,    333; 
broken,   regarded  as  a  steel,    250 ;    rare    in 
hoards,  256  ;  with  hilt  of  ox-horn,  252 
Rattles,  crotals,  or  bells,  361,  364 
Ravaliere,  Levesque  de  la,  quoted,  20 
Ravensworth,  Lord,  collection,  288,  335 
Razors,   217  to  221,  480 ;  continental  forms,  221 ; 
crescent-shaped,  221  ;  from  Lake-dwellings, 
215  ;  Irish,   218,  318  ;  perforated,  218  to  221 ; 
tanged,  217  to  219 ;  tanged,  peculiar  to  Bri- 
tain, 480 

Read,  Mr.  C.,  231 
Reaping-hooks,     of     flint,     194    (see     Sickles); 

Saturn's,  17 

Reaping-machine,  Gaulish,  194 
"Recipient"  and  "received,"  the  terms  as  ap- 
plied to  celts,  107 

Religious  rites,  use  of  bronze  in,  18 
Repousse  work  on  Late  Celtic  bracelets,  388 
Reproduction  in  bronze  of  stone  forms,  40 
Reverence,  superstitious,  for  celts,  39 
Rhcecus  and  Theodoras,  the  Samians,  15 
Rhind,  Mr.  A.  Henry,  274,  275 
Richardson,  Dr.  Richard,  quoted,  155 
Rickman,  Mr.,  quoted,  35 

Rings,  38810  391;  82,  135,  158,  290;  bone,  51, 
232  ;  of  caldron,  411 ;  concentric,  on  shields, 
347  to  353  ;  connecting  straps  of  harness, 
399;  dentated,  for  maces,  271;  Egyptian, 
391;  Etruscan,  400;  gold,  389,  390,  391; 
hollow,  with  transverse  perforations,  389,  398, 
399 ;  interlinked,  405 ;  Irish,  in  pairs,  389 ;  on 
loop  of  celt,  n8,  158  ;  penannular,  198,  390, 
391;  and  plates  as  ornaments  for  horse- 
trappings,  404 ;  and  pellet  ornament,  124  to 
127  ;  spiral,  76,  390,  391 ;  stone  mould  for, 
158 ;  twisted,  390 

Ring-money,  African,  387  ;  Irish,  391 
Rivets,  horn    or  wood,    227;    imitation  of,  235, 
257,  260,  344 ;  long,  for  barbed  spear-heads, 
338 ;  numerous,  for  trumpet,  362 
Robinson,  Mr.  T.  W.  U.,  F.S.A.,  collection,  411, 

412 

Rod,  with  birds  and  rings,  406 
Rolleston,  Prof.,   F.R.S.,   quoted,   25,   277,  287, 

380 

Roman,  coins,  at  Kara  Bre,32,  115 ;  commemora- 
tive of  victories,  363  ;  priests,  bronze  knives 
of,  18  ;  pronunciation  of  celtis,  29 ;  remains, 
116;  sword,  long,  275 

Roman  numerals,  ornaments  resembling,  203 
Rome,  best  steel  imported  to,  from  China,  19 
Rosse,  Earl  of,  collection,  361,  411 ;  his  speculum 

metal,  416 

Rossi,  Prof.  Stefano  de,  quoted,  37 
Roughening  of  butt-end  of  celts,  67,  77, 160 
Rowland  quoted,  31,  32 

Rubbing-stones  for  grinding  and  polishing,  361, 
452 


GENEEAL   INDEX. 


497 


Sabine  priests,  bronze  knives  of,  18 

Sabres,  Japanese,  275 

Sacken,  Baron  von,  157,  181,  246,  308 

Sagartii,  the,  had  bronze  daggers,  17 

Sagas,  use  of  term  Paalstab  in,  72 

Sanford,  Mr.  W.  A.,  F.G.S.,  collection,  06,  377 

Sanscrit  term  for  iron,  10 

"  Sarcophagus  with  ashes  "  in  cairn,  273 

Savoy  Lake-dwellings.    See  Lake-dwellings 

Saws,  183,  184 ;  flint  flakes  used  as,  454 

Saxon  cemeteries,  preservation  of  iron  in,  25 

Saxony,  native  copper  in,  419 

Scabbards  and  scabbard-ends,  301  to  309,  336 ; 

French,   301 ;    localities    where    found,   481 ; 

Scottish,  304 

Scandinavia  never  occupied  by  the  Romans,  276 
Scarabzus  of  bronze,  155 
Schliemann,  Dr.,  quoted,  40,  166,  224,  297,  438 
Schreiber,  quoted,  43, 52,  104 
Scott,  Lady  John,  collection,  60 
Scythians,  the,  did  not  use  bronze,  17  ;  method  of 

taking  census  among,  318 
"Seare"  or  Sickle,  200 
Segested  cited,  52 
Seidler,  Mr.  Charles,  collection,  441 
Severus,  Britons  of  the  time  of,  355 
Sharp,  Mr.  S.,  F.S.A.,  collection,  43 
Sharpeners,  7  ;  broken  bronze  rapier  regarded  as, 

250 

Shaw,  Mr.  S.,  collection,  234 
Sheaths,  bronze,  301 ;  bronze,  for  iron  sword,  302 ; 

leather,   252,   289 ;  wooden,  with  interment, 
,  302 


J;  on  British  coins,  354 ;  Italian, 
iltic,   363;    Scottish,   349;   with 
•ly  Iron  swords,  354  ;  with  interment,  352 


ields,'343  to  356 ;  on 
353 ;  Late  Celtic, 
Early  Iron  sword 


Shiffner,  Sir  H.,  Bart.,  collection,  53 

Shipp,  Mr.,  233 

Sickle  of  Chronos,  15  ;  of  Elissa  and  Medea,  18, 
194;  ot  Saturn,  17 

Sickles,  194  to  203,  480,  487;  English,  197  ;  Scot- 
tish, 199 ;  Irish,  200 ;  French,  201 ;  German, 
202  ;  Italian,  202  j  Scandinavian,  195  ;  Swiss, 
195,  202 ;  method  of  hafting,  196 ;  flat,  with 
knobs  on  blade,  197,480;  socketed,  195,  198  et 
seqq.,  480 

Sidpnius  quoted,  162 

Sigimer,  his  followers  provided  with  missile 
hatchets,  162 

Silver,  apparently  unknown  in  the  Bronze  Age, 
487 ;  ornaments  at  Gungeria,  2 

Simpson,  Rev.  Sparrow,  D.D.,  collection,  147 

Sinai,  copper  from  peninsula  of,  8 

Sinclair  quoted,  200 

Sinope,  steel  of,  17 

Sistrum-like  instruments,  405 

Slafter,  Rev.  E.  F.,  quoted,  3 

Smith,  Dr.  Aquilla,  67 

Smith,  Mr.  C.  Roach,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  274;  col- 
lection, 249,  280,  325,  330,  351 

Smith,  Mr.  Ecroyd,  168 

Smith,  Dr.  John  Alexander,  56,  199,  221 

Soldering  unknown  in  the  Bronze  Age,  425 

Solly,  Mr.  S.,  F.S.A.,  233 

Sophocles  quoted,  194 

Spain,  tin  in,  419,  424 

Spear-heads,  310  to  338 ;  absent  from  barrows, 
342 ;  African,  340 ;  Arreton  Down  type,  257, 
260 ;  barbed,  337,  338,  481  ;  castings  for,  84 ; 
Celtic,  in  the  Alban  Necropolis,  341 ; 
Chinese,  330;  "eyed,"  333;  ferruled,  257; 
flint,  190,  225;  Greek,  313,  340;  inlaid  with 
gold,  313  ;  Irish,  311,  320 ;  iron,  342 ;  leaf- 
shaped,  248,  254,  312  to  321,  341,  481 ;  looped 
on  blade,  248,  327  to  331 ;  looped  on  socket, 
321  to  326 ;  moulds  for,  435  to  438 ;  perforated, 
288,  330  to  337  ;  retaining  portion  of  shaft, 
312,  313,  316,  327;  tanged,  257,  258;  types 
peculiar  to  Britain,  341 ;  where  found,  481 

Speculum-metal,  178,  416 


Spindle-whorl,  383 

Spirals,  their  absence  in  Britain,   2 
beads,  394,  485 

Spiral  rings,  76,  390,  391 

Spoon-like  articles,  406 

Squier  and  Davis  quoted,  3 

Stag's-horns,  284 ;  horn  handle  to  brass  instru- 
ment, 163  ;  handle  to  celts,  150 ;  instruments 
in  barrow,  226;  instruments  like  netting- 
meshes  in  barrow,  190 

Stair,  Earl  of,  collection,  137 

"  Stake,"  possible  origin  of  this  name  for  a  small 
anvil,  181 

Stature  of  men  interred  in  Yorkshire  barrows, 
278 

Steel  of  three  kinds  produced  by  the  Chalybes, 
17 ;  helmet  of  Hercules,  17 ;  known  in 
Homer's  day,  14 ;  Japanese  method  of 
preparing,  275  ;  reaping-hook  of  Saturn,  17  ; 
of  Sinope,  17 

Stevenson,  Mr.,  collection,  440 

Stiletto  and  bodkin,  served  a  double  purpose,  369 

Stone,  Mr.,  391 

Stone,  Mr.  Edward,  in 

Stone  anvils,  181 ;  mallets,  165 

Stone,  forms  reproduced  in  bronze,  40 ;  and 
bronze  associated,  41,  42,  51,  161,  165,  189, 
190,  223,  224,  225,  226,  232,  236,  238,  243,  256, 

„      366, 39i,  405,  452,  453,  456,  480,  487 

Strabo  quoted,  17,  19, 486 

Strobel,  Prof.,  quoted,  108,  202 

Stukeley  quoted,  31,  87,  107,  189 

Succession  of  iron  to  bronze,  4,  6,  16,  22,  23 

Sullivan,  Prof.  W.  K.,  417,  420 

Superposition  of  articles  of  different  date,  26 

Superstitious  reverence  for  beads,  394 ;  for  celts, 

Survival  of  celts  as  amulets,  134  ;  of'flanches" 
as  ornaments,  60,  107, 108,  no,  in,  131 

Sweden,  native  copper  in,  419 

Swiss  Lake-dwellings.    ^Geographical  Index. 

Swords,  273  to  300 ;  British,  275,  278  to  287 ; 
Celtiberian,  275  ;  Danish,  286,  296,  298,  309  ; 
Egyptian,  298  ;  Finnish,  299 ;  French,  281, 
287,  293,  297,  301 ;  Gaulish,  300 ;  German, 
298,  299;  Greek,  297 ;  Hallstatt,  299;  Hun- 
garian, 276;  Irish,  291,  293  to  296;  Italian, 

274,  297 ;  from  Mycenae,  297 ;  Roman,  275  ; 
Scandinavian,  274,  276,  287,  296, 298;  Scottish, 
273,  289, 290,  291 ;  from  site  of  Troy  (presumed), 
298;  Spanish,  275;   Swiss  Lakes,   280,   287, 

Swords,  absent  from  interments,  273,  274,  277 ; 
date  of,  273,  274,  275,  276 ;  Early  Iron,  274, 

275,  276,  280,  287,    297,  299,  300,    343,  354; 
found  in  a  moss  arranged  in  a  circle,  288  ; 
inlaid,  296,  297  ;  length  of,  275 ;  methods  of 
mending,  254,  293  ;  mode  of  grasping,  276 ; 
on  Italian  bronze  coin,  283 ;    types  almost 
peculiar  to  Britain,  481 ;  with  bronze  sheaths, 

Sword-hilts  and  hilt-plates  added  by  casting, 
287,  290 ;  Danish,  276 ;  Hungarian,  276 ; 
ferrules  on,  306;  gold  on,  286,  296,  298; 
of  ivory  inlaid  with  amber,  299 ;  longitudinal 
slots  in,  278,  &c.;  pommels  to,  of  alabaster, 
291 ;  pommels  with  curved  horns,  288 ;  pom- 
mels of  lead,  285  ;  with  plates  of  bone,  horn, 
or  wood,  278,  286,  290,  293,  296;  spirals  on, 
rare  in  Britain,  287 

Sydenham,  Mr.,  237 


Tacitus,  quoted,  275,  354 

Talbot  de  Malahide,  Lord,  collection,  104 

Tamassus,  mart  for  copper  at,  14 

Tasciovanus,  coins  of,  354,  363 

Teeth  of  animals  in  barrows,  42,  189 

Telamon,  battle  of,  275'. 

Telchines,  the,  gold,  silver,  and  copper  discovered 

by,  15 
K 


498 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Teutonic  languages,  name  for  copper  in,  10 
Thebes,  paintings  in  sepulchres  at,  7,  185 
Theophrastus  quoted,  15 
Theseus,  grave  of,  18 
Thorns,  Mr.,  note  on  Paalstabs,  72  . 
Thomsen,  Councillor,  72 
Thorlacius  quoted,  151 

Thurnara,  Dr.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,'  44,  134,  188,  189, 
191,  216,  222,  225,  230,  232,  236,  241,  242,  369, 

Tin,  bead  of,  394;  coins  of,  445  ;  early  sources  of, 
418;  Egyptian,  source  unknown,  8  ;  exported 
from  Britain,  before  Roman  invasion,  419, 
476 ;  found  in  Brittany,  419 ;  fragments  of, 
136,  315,  425 ;  in  bronze,  loss  of,  by  fusion, 
418 ;  in  hoards  of  bronze,  425  ;  in  ingots,  426  ; 
Malacca,  principal  Eastern  source  of,  424; 
mentioned  by  Homer,  12  ;  pure  metallic,  425  ; 
pure,  used  by  early  Greeks,  12;  Spain, 
principal  Western  source  of,  424;  trade 
with  Britain  for,  424 ;  used  for  soldering, 

Tinned,  implements  supposed  to  be,  55,  56,  57 

Tischler,  Dr.  Otto,  24 

Tongs,  185 

Torquati,  origin  of  their  name,  374 

Torques,  374  to  381 ;  76,  96,  198 ;  beaded,  181 ; 
Danish,  379  ;  on  denarii  of  the  Manlia  Gens, 
374 ;  derivation  of  name,  374 ;  funicular,  375 
to  377;  gold,  90,  180,  209,  375,  376;  gold, 
Gaulish,  374  ;  gold,  Irish,  with  ball  at  each 
end,  379 ;  Late  Celtic,  381 ;  ribbon,  90,  379 ; 
rings  on,  390 ,391 

Towneley,  Mr.  Charles,  48 

Tree-burial.     See  Interment. 

Tresca,  M.,  416 

Trevelyan,  Sir  Charles,  collection,  89,  333  ;  Sir 
Walter,  386 

"Tribulum,"  the,  202 

Trojans,  "  bronze-speared,"  16 

Troy,  swords  rare  on  the  presumed  site  of,  298 

Troyon,  M.,  collection,  131 

Trumpets,  357  to  364 ;  African,  of  elephants' 
tusks,  359 ;  broken  and  repaired  by  burning, 
360 ;  English,  363 ;  found  at  Downs,  361  ; 
from  Fiji,  of  conch  shells,  359  j'Gaulish,  363  ; 
Irish,  357,  361 ;  Late  Celtic,  362  ;  metal  of, 
360,  363 ;  Scottish,  363  ;  with  lateral  opening, 
358 

"iTuagh-catha,"  Irish  war-axe,  263 

Tubal-Cain,  5 

Tubes,  265  ;  looped,  397 

Tucker,  Mr.,  F.S.A.,  254 

Tuscan  cities,  bronze  ploughshare  used  in  found- 
ing, 18 

"Tutuli,"  402 

Tweezers,  191,  192 ;  ivory,  241 

U 

Umbrian  coins  with  the  type  of  a  sword,  283 
Unfinished  castings,  84,  90,  115,  175,  328 
Uralian  province  of  bronze  antiquities,  477 
Urn-burials,  42, 190,  191.  217,  226,  234,  384,  391 ; 

at  Hallstatt,  412 
Urns,  cinerary,  474;    cinerary,  said  to  contain 

sword,  273  ;  of  coarse  earthenware,  87  ;  found 

at  Chiusi,  156;  inverted,  234 
Urus,  remains  of,  at  Barton  Mere,  486 
Utilization  of  broken  instruments,  180,  361,  454 


Vallancey  quoted,  138, 176,  200,  201,  234,  263,  361 

399;  as  to  Irish  moulds,  439 
Variations  in  implements  cast  in  the  same  mould. 

Various  centres  of  bronze-founding  in  Britain 
143,  477 

\rases  of  Etruscan  origin,  413,  481 

Vauquelin's  analysis  of  Egyptian  dagger,  420 

Verica,  gold  coins  of,  354,  399 

Vessels,  amber,  407 ;  bronze,  361 ;  bronze,  coni- 
cal, 413  ;  bronze,  ornamented,  413  ;  bronze, 
with  iron  handle,  409 ;  gold,  408 ;  sandstone, 
409 ;  shale,  407 

Virgil  quoted,  12,  13,  16,  194 

Von  Bibra,  referred  to,  422 

A^on  Estorff  quoted,  315 

Von  Sacken  quoted,  157,  181,  246,  308 

Votive  celts  or  hatchets,  69,  135,  417 ;  hoards,  457 

Vulgate,  different  readings  of,  28 


43, 


Wakeman,  Mr.,  collection,  303 

Wakeman,  Mr.,  quoted,  252 

Wallace,  Mr.  J.  R.,  collection, 

Warburton,  Air.,  447 

Ware,  Mr.  Samuel,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  48 

Warne,  Mr.  C.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  234,  238,  243 

Watson,  Mr.  C.  Knight,  Sec.  S.A.,  quoted,  27 

Way,  Mr.  Albert,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  37,  50,  51,  166 

"  Welding,"  the  term,  293 

Westendorp  quoted,  152 

Westwood,  Prof.,  quoted,  8r 

Whetstones  in  hoards,  113,  397,  452  ;  with  inter- 
ments, 51,  225,  226,  242,  366;  in  urns,  163, 
217;  use  of,  453 

Whincopp,  Mr.,  collection,  260 . 

Whitaker,  Dr.,  collection,  48 ;  quoted,  47 

Whitaker,  Mr.  W.,  F.G.S.,  248 

Wibel,  Dr.,  419 

Wickham,  Mr.  Humphrey,  collection,  214,  230 

Wilde,  Sir  W.  R.,  37,  39,  40,  61,  65,  67,  101,  155, 
170,  184,  252,  264,  293,  306,  311,  357,  360,  361, 
364,  372,  389,  399,  4io 

Wilkinson,  Sir  Gardner,  quoted,  5,  6,  185 

Wilshe  collection,  208 

Wilson,  Prof.  Daniel,  quoted,  58,  72,  99,  136, 137, 
169,  176,  207,  209,  214,  272,  273, 337,  348,  354, 

Wilton'  Jlev.  George/ 167  J 

Wood  preserved  by  salt,  152 ;  preserved  by  salts 
of  copper,  160;  preserved  by  salts  of  iron, 

Wooden  hafts  for  celts,  144,  149, 150,  151,  155, 
157  ;  handle  of  sickle,  of  yew,  195  ;  handle  of 
knife,  of  yew,  207  ;  shafts  for  spears,  of  ash, 
312,  313  ;  shafts  for  spears,  of  beech,  339 ; 
shafts  for  spears,  of  bog-oak,  313  ;  sheath 
for  dagger,  308 ;  sheath  for  dagger,  ap- 
parently of  willow,  233 

Woodward  Collection,  167 

Worm,  Dr.  Olaf,  quoted,  30 

Worsaae,  Councillor,  quoted,  72,  163,  276,  298, 
457,  478,  482 

Wright,  T.,  F.S.A.,  quoted,  9,  20,  37,  274,  400 


Yates.  Mr.  James,  F.R.S.,  quoted,  36,  168 
Young,  Mr.  A.  Knight,  collection,  296 


INDEX, 

GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL. 

See  also  "Hoards"  and  "Museums"  in  General  Index. 


BEDFORDSHIRE. 

Toddington,  321 
Wymington,  113,  466 

BERKSHIRE. 

Ashdown,  322 

Blewbury,  225 

Cottle,  215 

Fyfield,  322 

Hagbourn  Hill,  144,  322,  368,  466,  470,  471 

Isis,  near  Little  Wittonham,  343 

Kennet  and  Avon  Canal,  247 

Newbury,  77,  81,  259,  308 

Rowcroft,  Yattendon,  242 

Speen,  330,  333,  337 

Sunningwell,  80 

Sutton  Courtney,  223 

Thames,  near  Bray,  199 

„       near  Maidenhead,  245 
Thatcham,  247 
Theale,  247 

Wallingford,  87,  128,  167,  206,  219,  321,  457,  466 
Wantage,  79 

Windsor,  84,  113,  199,  281,  314,  340 
Yattendon,  169,  403,  466 

BUCKINGHAMSHIRE. 

Buckinghamshire,  81 
Hawridge,  279 
Lodge  Hill,  Waddesdon,  HI 
Thames,  near  Datchet,  330,  333 
Wiuslow,  380 

CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 

Aldreth,  279 

Barrington,  78,  118,  128,  466 

Bottisham,  79,  83,  88,  112,  314 

,,         Lode,  92,  123,  175,  328' 
Burwell  Fen,  74,  79,  82,  83,  113,  248,  258,  336,  378, 

467 

Cambridge,  94,  127,  179,  244,281/323,  371 
Chatteris,  250 
Coveney,  Isle  of  Ely,  129,  248 

„        Fen,  328,  346 
Downham  Fen,  199 
Duxford,  43 
Ely,  01,  254 

„    Fens  at,  53,  78,  121,  282,  286,  322 
Fens,  43,  83,  90,  91,  93,  "6,  122,  129,  245,  248,  317, 

33° 

Fen  Ditton,  123 
Fordham,  254 

Fulbourn,  279,  282,  320,  340,  464 
Harston,  79 
Isleham  Fen,  327 
Malton,  397 
Manea,  270 
March,  52 
Matlow  Hill,  366 


Melbourn,  174,  389,  397,  466 

Meldreth,  172,  201,  411,  424,  466 

Mildenhall  Fen,  78,  133 

Newton,  in,  422 

Quy  Fen,  79,  316 

Reach  Fen,  79,  112,  118,  122,  133,  167,  174,  187,  205, 

210,  211,  213,  216,  229,  283,  305,  314,  315,  317, 

319,  396,'40o,  467 
Shippey,  Ely,  79 
Soham  Fen,  245 
Stretham  Fen,  199 
Swaffham  Fen,  78,  259 
Waterbeach,  245,  248,  250 
Whittlesea,  131,  175,  179,  466 
Wicken  Fen,  76,  199,  205,  287,  464 
Wisbech,  131 

CHESHIRE. 

Broxton,  91,  169,  331,  464 
Grappenhall,  43 
Wilmslow,  228,  238 

CORNWALL. 

Cornwall,  96,  116,  119,  135,  385,  419,  425,  426 
Angrowse  Mullion,  243 
Camelford,  438 
Falmouth,  426 
Fowey  River,  369 
Harlyn,  42 

Karn  Bre,  32,  115,  119 
Kenidjack  Cliff,  95,  119,  423,  451,  467 
Lanant,  206,  285,  340,  423,  451,  467 
Launceston,  119 
Mawgan,  116,  184,  250,  465 
Penvores,  95 
Penzance,  81 
Redmore,  400 
Rillaton,  407 
t.  Austell, 


St. 

St.  Hilary, 

St.  Michael's 


,  423,  467 
ount,  31 


K  K2 


CUMBERLAND. 

Cumberland,  322 

Aspatria,  86 

Camp  Graves,  Bewcastle,  314 

Irthington,  85 

Keswick,  93 

Longtown,  73 

Naworth  Castle,  334 

Wigton,  73 

DERBYSHIRE 

Derbyshire,  175 
Bakewell,  316 
Biggen  Grange,  168 
Blakelow,  42 
Borther  Low,  42 
Brassington  Moor,  88,  228 
Brier  Low,  226 
Brough,  122 
Carder  Low,  225,  226 
.Dow  Low,  237 


500 


GEOGRAPHICAL   AND   TOPOGRAPHICAL    INDEX. 


Duffield,  325 

Lea,  at  Stratford-le-Bow,  258 

End  Low,  225 

„     River,  280 

Haddon  Field,  190 

Mardyke,  254 

High  Low,  453 
Lark's  Low,  190 
Matlock,  42,  259 

Panfield,  468 
Plaistow  Marshes,  338 
Romford,  86,  172,  424,  467 

Middleton,  226 

Stifford,  282 

Minning  Low,  190,  225 

Thames,  near  Barking  Creek,  284 
„        near  Erith,  122 

NarrowdTle4Hi22,4228 

Walthamstow,  317,  411 

Parcelly  Hay,  225 
Parwich  Moor,  42 

GLOUCESTERSHIRE. 

Peak  Forest,  122 
Shuttlestone,  42,  150 
Stakor  Hill,  392 

Ablington,  241 
Cirencester,  241 
Kilcot  Wood,  Newent,  48 

Standlow,  231 
Thor's  Cave,  Walton,  385 
Throwley,  190 
Waggon  Low,  190 
Wardlow,  314 

Meon  Hill,  133 
Nether  Swell,  217 
Severn,  near  Wainlodes  Hill,  80 
South  Cerney,  81 
Stanton,  73 

DEVONSHIRE. 

Devonshire,  95 

Whittington,  45 

Bloody  Pool,  338,  339,  465 
Broad  Down,  Farway,  134 

HAMPSHIRE. 

Arreton  Down,  Isle  of  Wight,  49,  243,  244,  257, 

Chagford,  82 

259,  260,  278,  464,  473 

Drewsteignton,  86 
Hammeldon  Down,  228 

Ashey  Down,  226 
Bere  Hill,  234 

Hennock,  250 

Blackmoor,  464 

Honiton,  113 

Fovant,  393 

Kent's  Cavern,  206 

Hinton,  424 

Knighton,  434 
Lovehayne,  81 

Liss,  54,  383 
New  torest,  115 

Plymstock,  50,  165,  241,  259,  464 
Sidmouth,  47 

Woolmer  Forest,  378,  383,  39O,  4«4 

Talaton,  250 

HEREFORDSHIRE. 

Teigngrace,  316 
Torrington,  244 

Aston  Ingham,  250 
Broadward,  168,  285,  319,  320,336,  338,  340,  397,  465 

Upton  Pyne,  224 
Winkleigh,  250 

Bucknell,  74 
Oldbury  Hill,  90 

Worth,  254,  313,  402,  464] 

DORSETSHIRE. 

Ross,  91 
St.  Margaret's  Park,  Hereford,  340 
AVeston,  78 

Dorsetshire,  52,  206,  226,  233,  238,  377,  381,  393 
Badbury,  250 

HERTFORDSHIRE.    , 

Hertfordshire,  314 

Bincombe  Down,  226 

Cumberlow,  94,  no,  134,  424,  467 

Blandford,  127,  175 
Came,  242 

Danesbury,  423,  468 
Lea  River,  St.  Margaret's,  315 

Cranbourne,  282 
Gussage  St.  Michael,  279 
King  Barrow,  Wareham,  114 
Maiden  Castle,  237 

Royston,  424 
Westwick  Row,  112,  424,  468 
AVigginton,  213 

Milton,  380,  432 
Portland,  Isle  of,  115,  121,  285,  318,  333 
Preston  Down,  46 
Purbeck,  94 

HUNTINGDONSHIRE  . 

Hammerton,  90 
Horsey,  330 
Taxley  Fen,  43 

Roke  Down,  233 

KENT. 

Spetisbury,  378 
Wareham,  115 

Kent,  129,  426 
Allhallows,  Hoo,  214,  230,  46- 

>            »    79,  3I3>  4*9,  4°4 

Ashford,  81,  82 

Woodlands,  279 

Blean,  88 
Buckland,  88 

DURHAM. 

Canterbury,  114,  168 

Broomyholme,  351 
Chester-le-Street,  116 

Chartham,  322 
Chatham  Dockyard,  74 

Heathery  Bum  Cave,  no,  118,  166,  172,  175,  185, 

206,    211,  219,  285,  314,  365,  372,   38l,   386,   388, 

391,  401,  402,  412,  424,  447,  451,  468 
Medomsley,  285,  389 
Stanhope,  118,  129,  174,  179,  315,  403,  466 
Wrolsingham,  76 

ESSEX. 

„         Hill,  83 
Dover,  52 
Harty,  Jsle  of,  no,  in,  174,  177,  181,  186,  211,  214, 
308,  403.  441,  442,  453,  457,  468 
Haynes  Hill,  297,  305,  320,  403,  467     . 
Hundred  of  Hoo,  95,  466 
Marden,  198,  208,  211,  308,  366,  381,  388,  45°,  45*. 
467 

Essex,  403 
Baddow  Hall  Common,  43 

Medway,  Chatham  Reach,  281 
„         Upper  Reach,  280 

Barking  Marshes,  no 
Chelmsford,  90 

Minster,  129 
Sittingbourne,  113,  174,  424,  467 

Chrishall,  117,  283,  467 

Thames  at  Greenwich,  284 

Fifield,  424 
Gray's  Thurrock,  144 
High  Roding,  109,  116,  424,  468 

„        off  Woolwich,  351 
Wateringbury,  109 
Wye  Down,  52 

GEOGRAPHICAL   AND    TOPOGRAPHICAL   INDEX. 


501 


LANCASHIRE. 

Lancashire,  87 
Acker's  Common,  86 
Cuerdale,  118,  314 
Gleaston  Castle,  43 
Kirkland  Cave,  168 
Lancaster  Moor,  224 
Mow  Road,  Rochdale.  381 
Read,  47 
Risdon,  46 
Wir       ' 
Wi 


Lisdon,  46 

Vinmarleigh,  118,  314,  335,  466 

Vinwick,  82,  124,  158,  224 


LEICESTERSHIRE. 

Beacon  Hill,  43,  174,  321,  466 
ster,  231 


Lei 


LINCOLNSHIRE. 

Lincolnshire,  284,  390 

Alnwick,  Sleaford,  445 

Billinghay,  282 

Boston,  34,  89 

Broughton,  216 

Burringham  Common,  352 

Klsham,  80 

Fleet  and  Gedney,  Sea-dike  between,  285 

Flixborough,  465 

Haxey,  89,  129,  465 

Horncastle,  54 

Langton,  323 

Lincoln,  325 

Nettleham,  86,  92,  131,  314,  330,  339,  465 

Newport,  177 

North  Owersby,  85 

Scothorn,  175 

Sleaford  River,  86 

South  Kyme,  248 

Washingborough,  279,  447 

West  Halton,  113,  118,  120,  424,  467 

Witham  River,  287,  341,  363 

MIDDLESEX. 

Edmonton  Marsh,  205,  330 

Hampton  Court,  328 

Hounslow,  no,  128,  175,  210,  406,  451,  466 

Kensington,  158,  174,  401,  424,  450,  467 

London,  95,  214,  272,  356 

Pentonville,  328 

Teddington,  243 

Thames,  at  Chelsea,  303 

„        between  Hampton  and  Walton,  352 

„        near  Islewortn,  52,  302 

„  at  or  near  London,  84,  86,  125,  126,  158, 
168,  198,  205,  211,  224,  247,  249,  280,  287, 
3°3.  307,  3",  3i4>  322,  325,  333,  339,  345, 
35L  400 

„        at  Teddington,  303 

„        near  Waterloo  Bridge,  356 

MONMOUTHSHIRE. 

Castle  Hill,  Usk,  114  : 

NORFOLK. 

Norfolk,  52, 167 
Attleborough,  77 
Carlton  Rode,  78,  94,  113,  119,  121,  122,  133,  167, 

171,  173,  175,  178,  424,  467 
Caston,  121 
Dereham,  199 
Eaton,  447,  468 
Frettenham,  120 

„  Common,  131 

Hanworth,  114 
Helsdon  Hall,  424,  467 
Ingham,  319 
Little  Cressingham,  244 
Methwold,  249 

Ouse  River,  near  Thetford,  250 
Reepham,  466 
Rougham,  73 
Snettisham,  -Q 


Stibbard,  84,  328,  457,  464 

Stoke  Ferry,  270,  282,  305,  314,  465 

Sutton,  St.  Michael's,  352 

NORTHAMPTONSHIRE. 

Northamptonshire,  90 
Aston -le- Walls,  89 
Aynhoe,  73 
Brixworth,  285 

NORTHUMBERLAND. 

Northumberland,  46,  158 
Alnwick,  43,  113,  285,  321,  391,  465 
Blakehope,  335 
Hranton,  285 
Cambo,  429 
Cheswick,  241 
Chollerford  Bridge,  74 
Corbridge,  248,  333,  351 
Elford,  327 
Ewart  Park,  285 
Ford,  244    ' 
Harwood,  352 

Newbiggin,  43 
Newcastle-on-Tyne,  351 
Newham,  120 
North  Charlton,  237 

„  Tyne,  78 
Rothbury,  389 
Tosson,  285 

Tyne,  near  Newcastle,  281 
Wallington,  89,  333,  382,  46$ 
Wallsend,  43 
Whittingham,  280,  288,  314,  335,  464 

NOTTINGHAM. 

Colwick,  77 

Gotam,  190 

Gringley,  321 

Newark,  118,  316,  402,  466 

Nottingham,  93,  118,  211, 317,  322,  339,  465 

OXFORDSHIRE. 

Oxfordshire,  95 

Burgesses'  Meadow,  Oxford,  81,  i6g,'i7t),  467 

Cherwell  River,  287 

Culham,  75,  320 

Dorchester,  75,  76,  78,  83,  86,  93,  109,  112 

Dyke  Hills,  343 

Freeland,  79 

Isis,  near  Dorchester,  303 

„    near  Eynsham  Bridge,  345 
Sandford,  248,  284 
Stanlake,  391 
Stanton  Harcourt,  88 
Yarn  ton,  380 


Shropshire,  270 

Battlefield,  43,  86,  405 
Broadward  (see  Here " 


, 
3,  234,  314,  336,  452,  465 


Ebnall,  167,  174,  187,  466 
Little  Wenlock,  11 
Porkington,  168,  174,  466 
Severn,  near  Buildwas,  282 
Wrekin  Tenement,  285,  338,  465 

SOMERSETSHIRE. 

Bath,  89,  114,  116 

Camerton,  243,  369 

Cheddar  Valley,  96 

Chilton  Bustle,  368 

Edington  Burtle,  197,  249,  320,  325,  330,  377,  385, 

Hamden4Hill,  3«9 
Midsummer  Norton,  279 


Pen  Pits,  377 

Hill,  353 


Priddy,  217,  226 


502 


GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Quantock  Hills,  77,  377,  447,  464 

Sedgemoor,  119 

Sherford,  go,  330,  464 

Sparkford  Hill,  167,  197 

South  Petherton,  96 

Taunton,  116,  178,  198,  218,  367,  389,  466 

Tiverton,  284 

Wadsford,  328 

Wedmore,  376,  378,  466 

West  Buckland,  96,  377,  386,  464 

.,     Cranmore,  242 

Wick  Park,  Stogursey,  120,  304,  423,  450,  467 
Wmterhay  Green,  90,  384 
Wraxall,  381 

STAFFORDSHIRE. 

Staffordshire,  31 
Alton  Castle,  282 
Brewood,  86 
Bushbury,  86 

Castern,  near  Wetton,  385 
Ham  Moor,  190 

„    St  Bertram's  Well,  42 
Lady  Low,  216,  224 
Lett  Low,  225,  226 
Morridge,  86 
Musdin,  240 
Pattingham,  375 
Shenstone,  285,  465 
Stretton,  87 
Thorncliff,  225 
Wetton,  383,  409 
Yarlet,  321 

SUFFOLK. 

Suffolk,  48 
Barrow,  54,  279 
Barton  Mere,  486 

Brooms'wellj  Woodbridge,  90 

Exning,  174,  394,  466 

J-ornham,  122 

Hintlesham,  260 

Honington,  91 

Ipswich,  411 

Lakenheath,  80,  125,  320,  322 

Lark  'River,  Icklingham,  282 

Lidgate,  271 

Martlesham,  113,  119,  120,  129,  174,  206,  424,  467 

Mildenhall,  46,  78,  127,  306 

Postlingford  Hall,  48,  464 

Sutton,  84,  87 

Thetford,  122,  321 


Undley,  175 
Wetheringsett,  274,  282 
Woolpit,  281,  328 

SURREY. 

Battersea,  245 

Beddington,  no,  174  320,  340,  423,  447,  468 

Caesars  Camp,  Farnham   m   2^0 

Canada  Wharf,  RotherhithefgT 

Ditton,  128,  245,  316,  319,  328 

Farley  'Heath,  69,  169  ,322 

Guildford,  120 

Kingston,  124,  126,  321 

„        Hill,  82,  423,  467 
Thames  at  Battersea,  175,  278,  279,  281,  321,  327, 

Kingston,  84,  86,   125,  211,  248,  250, 
T  254,  284,338 

„          Lambeth,  330 

„         Richmond,  246 

,,         Runnymede,  328 

„         Vauxhall,  248,  279 

„         Wandsworth,  130 
-n-     'Ji    u  .mouth  of  Wandle,  282,  316,  368 
H  andle  River,  81,  465 
Wickham  Park,  Croydon,  95,  340,  423,  448,  4f  S 


SUSSEX. 

Alfriston,  114 

Battle,  280,  363 

Beachy  Head,  94,  283,  423,  467 

Billingshurst,  81 

Bognor,  80,  81 

Bracklesham,  244 

Brighton,  80,  115 

Chichester,  81 

Clayton  Hill,  80 

Eastbourne,  316 

Firle,369       ' 

Ham  Cross,  385 

Hangleton  Down,  87, 322 

Highdown  Camp,  205 

Hollingbury  Hill,  76,  115,  378,  3»6,  390,  464 

Hove,  243,  453,  486 

Ilford,  81 

Lewes,  53,  316,  369 

Lewes  and  Brighton,  between,  368 

Plumpton  Plain,  52,  no 

Pulborough,  87,  119 

Pyecombe,  318,  386 

Storrington,  190 

Waldron,  91 

Westburton,  84 

Wilmington,  87,  447,  468 

Wolsonbury  HiU,  84,  401 

Worthing,  87,  423,  467 


New  Bilton,  245 
Rugby,  179. 
Wolvey,  75,  86 


WARWICKSHIRE. 


WESTMORELAND. 

Ambleside,  285,  465 
Brough,  53 
Crosby  Garrett,  387 
Harbyrnrigge,  270 
Helsington  Peat  Moss,  246 

WILTSHIRE. 

Wiltshire,  110,219,440 

Ablington,  242 

Abury,  366 

Aldbourn,  241 

Amesbury,  233,  377,  390 

Avebury,  400 

Barrows,  51,  190,  191,  227,  230,  241,  242,  260,  322 

Beckhampton,  190,  322 
Brigmilston,  226,  230,  336 
Bulford,  190,  366 

„      Water,  143,  432 
Bush  Barrow,  44,  51,  232.  352 
Cann,  118,  134,470 
Downton,  89,  91,  120 
East  Harnham,  83 
„    Kennett,  226 
Everley,  147, 163,  242,  366 
Fisherton,  248 
Fovant,  242, 393 
Golden  Barrow,  189,  224 
Great  Bedwin,  272 
Homington,  237 
Idmiston,  237 

Tack's  Castle,  Stourton,  226 
King  Barrow,  190,  241 
Lake,  166,  189,  242,  366,  385,  393 
Mere  Down,  223 
Normanton,  366,  385 
Overton  Hill,  51,  134 
Ramsbury,  87 
Robin  Hood's  Ball,  216 
Rockbourn  Down,  118 
Roundway,  223,  242 
Salisbury  Plain,  369 
Scratchbury,  369 
Stonehenge,  47 

„  Barrow  near,  189,  191,  226 

Stourhead,  229 


GEOGRAPHICAL   AND   TOPOGRAPHICAL   INDEX. 


503 


Sutton  Verney,  394 
Tun  Hill,  114 

CHANNEL   ISLANDS,  &c 

Upton  Lovel,  189,  366 
Wilsford,  51,  226,  322,;,66,  405 
AVinterbourn  Stoke,  229,  241,  394 
AVinterslow,  216,  223 
"Woodyates  Barrow,  236 

ALDERNEY. 

Alderney,  201 
La  Pierre  du  Villain,  214,  279,  397 
Longy  Common,  321,  467 

Yatesbury,  226 

GUERNSEY. 

WORCESTERSHIRE. 

"  La  Roche  qui  sonne,"  385 

Astley,  8  1 

ISLE  OF   MAN. 

Bevere  Island,  42 

Broadway  Tower,  280 

Broust  in  Andreas,  120 

Castle  Hill,  120 

Castleton,  43 

Holt,  129,  368 

East  Surby,  44 

Ombersley,  88 
Perdeswell,  381 

Kirk-bride,  120 
Kirk-patrick.  120 

Severn  at  Kempsey,  330 

Peel,  326 

,,      near  Worcester,  337 
Stoke  Prior,  384 

SCILLY  ISLES. 

Peninnis  Head,  383 

YORKSHIRE. 

Yorkshire,  44,  118,  129,  132,  189,  211,  226,  318,  422, 

WALES. 

Arras,  or  Hessleskew,  23,  134,  387 

North  Wales,  78,  144 

Bilton,  113,  129,  282,  314,  320,465 

ANGLESEA. 

Bishop  Wilton,  227,  228 
Bolton  Percy,  88 

Anglesea,  79,  391,  423 
Bodwrdin  and  Tre  Ddafydd,  between,  438 

Bridlington,  400 
Brigmilston,  230 
Brompton,  76 
Broughton  in  Craven,  217 
Butterwick,  41,  151,  189,  224 
Cawthorn,  227 

Holyhead  Mountain,  206 
Llangwyllog,  81,  192,  219,  387,  389,  399,  400,  466 
Llanidan,  82,  89 
Llanvair  Station,  86 
Menai  Bridge,  54,  86 
Ty-Mawr,  Holyhead,  129,  168,  315,  381,  3°9,  4°° 

Cayton  Carr,  125 

BRECKNOCKSHIRE. 

Cleveland,  447,  468 
Cowlam,  387,  391,  400 
Cundall  Manor,  86 
Driffield,  223 

Brecknockshire,  274 
Hay,  77,  329 
Keven  Hirr  Vynidd,  114 

Earsley  Common,  113,  134,  424,  468 

CAERMARTHEN. 

Ebberston,  280,  285,  307 
Embsay,  381 

Kidwelly,  95 

Fimber,  190 

JCAERNARVON. 

Frodingham,  113 
Garton,  228,  230 
Gembling-,  127 
Givendale,  127 
Goodmanham,  392 
Gristhorpe,  228 

Bryn  Crug,  c6,  223,  367 
Danesfield,  90,  440 
Glangwnny,  87 
Moel  Siabod,  351 
Nantlle,  438 

Helperthorpe,  227 

CARDIGANSHIRE. 

Hotham  Carr,  84,  92,  440,  468 
Hull.  118 
Humber  River,  338 
Keldholm,  452 

Aberystwith,  351 
Glancych  or  Pant-y-Maen,  285,  304,  315,  34°,  3?9, 

Pendinas  Hill,  79 

Knapton,  41 
Langton  Wold,  189 

DENBIGHSHIRE. 

Leeds,  242 
Lowthorpe,  327 
Middleham,  335 
Middleton,  118 

Abergele,  144,  308,  404,  405,  471 
Llandysilio,  93,  119,  206,  465 
Rhosnesney,  55,  9°,  226»  464 

Morley,  328 

GLAMORGANSHIRE. 

Pickering,  227,  228 
Raisthorp,  43 
Ravenshill  Harrow,  190 

Glamorganshire,  282,  375 
Corbridge,  86 
Great  Wood,  St.  Pagan's,  119 

Reeth,  76 
Roseberry  Topping,  129,  172,  174,  178,397,424,468 

Mynydd-y  Glas,  119 
New  Forest,  205 

Rudstone,  224.  225 
Scale  House,  Barrow  near,  474 
Seamer  Carr,  124,  213 
Sherburn  Carr,  43 
Wold,  223 

Ogmore  Down,  356 
Pendoylan,  338 
Pont  Caradog,  43 
Swansea,  43 

Stanwick,  314.  328 

MERIONETHSHIRE. 

Tadcaster,  118,  158 
Thixendale,  168 
Three  Tremblers,  240 
Ulleskelf,  93,132 
Westow,  85,  118,  130,  168,  172,  174,  388,  450,  4"J7 
Wolds,  391,  473 
Wykeham  Moor,  366 

Merionethshire,  144 
Barmouth,  285 
Cader  Idris,  375 
Castell-y-Bere,  401 
Cynwyd,  79 
Dolgellau,  285 

504 


GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


Harlech,  248,  345 
Maentwrog,  248,  328,  465 
Monach-ty-Gwyn,  77 
Tomen-y-Mur,  226 
Vronheulog,  93,  321 

CAITHNESS. 

Bowermadden,  372 
Forse,  289 
Kettleburn,  Pict's  House  near,  192 

Caersws,  81 

Dumbarton,  391 

Guilsfield,  87,  it4,  174,  285,  302,  315,  336,  339,  424, 
467 

Old  Kirkpatrick,  324 

Llandrinio,  81 

DUMFRIES. 

Llanfyllin,  78 
Llanrhaiadar-yn-Mochnant.  380 

Applegarth,  60 
Birrenswark,  97 

Llan-y-Mynech  Hill,  318 
Trefeglwys,  322 

RADNORSHIRE. 

Drumlanrig,  55 
Fairholm,  247,  322 
Lochar  Moss,  381 

"  Castle  Tump,  The,"  Newchurch,  247 
Llansanffraid.'Cwm  Deuddwr,  270 
St.  Harmon,  81 

EAST  LOTHIAN. 

Preston  Tower,  382 

Woodhouse  Farm,  Knighton,  90 

EDINBURGH. 

SCOTLAND. 

Scotland,  97,  126,  166,  170,  238,  252,  289,  290,  291, 
308,  424,  471 

Edinburgh,  289 
Cobbinshaw,  56 
Duddingston  Loch,  289,  315,  335,  409,  424,  405 
Edinburgh,  190,  289,  372.  401 
„           Arthur's  Seat,  136,  289 

Bell's  Mills,  135,  136 

ABERDEEN. 

Leith  Citadel,  136 

Aberdeen,  289 
Aboyne,  388 
Alford,  430 
Belhelvie,  378 
Burreldale  Moss,  97 

Gogar  Burn,  304 
Kinleith,  221 
Lawhead,  Farm  of,  57 
Ravelston,  56 

Edengerach.  200 

ELGIN. 

Forest  of  Birse,  136 
Kintore,  57,  430 

Sluie,  270 
Urquhart,  378 

Lumphanan,  380 

Memsie,  273 
Methlick,  289 
Redhill  Premnay,  382 
Strathdon,  388 

FIFESHIRE. 

Fifeshire,  289 
Auchtermuchty,  247 
Collessie,  239 

Tarland,  57 

Dams,  61 

Tarves,  290,  372,  465 
Tullynessle,  Lord  Arthur's  Cairn,  97 
Ythsie,  304 

Dunino,  57 
Falkland,  59,  269 
Kilrie,  244 

Pettycur,  99 

ARGYLESHIRE. 

St.  Andrew's,  218 

Argyleshire,  289 

FORFARSHIRE. 

Barcaldine,  97 
Callachally,  Isle  of  Mull,  239 
Campbelton,  207,  260,  437 
Cleigh,  239 
Irvine,  289 
Kilmartin,  430 

Forfarshire,  289 
Brechin,  290,  465 
Cauldhame,  304 
Dean  Water,  326 
Denhead,  337 

North  Knapdale,  135 
Southend,  Cantire,  136 
Strachur,  170 

Forfar,  320 
Leuchland,  289 
Linlathen,  239 
Loch  of  Forfar,  136 

AYRSHIRE. 

HADDINGTONSHIRE. 

Ayrshire,  289 
Caprington,  362 
Coilsfield,  362 

Bowerhouses,  Dunbar,   220,  465 
Corsbie  Moss,  290 

Kilkerran,  410 

Lugtonridge,  Beith,  348 
Trochrig,  430 

INVERNESS-SHIRE. 

Ardgour  House,  56 
Benibhreae,  Hill  of,  406 

BANFF. 

Craigton,  322 

Alvah,  388 
Colleonard,  56,  58 
Conage,  382 
Hill  of  Fortrie  of  Balnoon,  56 

Kilmailie,  430 
Skye,  Isle  of,  iqo,  209,  290   " 
„            Point  of  Sleat,  289,  315,  372,  465 
South  Uist,  lochdar,  289 

Longman,  59 

KINCARDINE. 

BERWICKSHIRE. 

Kincardine,  289 

Cockburnspath,  410 
Corsbie  Moss,  290,  464 

KIRCUDBRIGHTSHIRE  . 

Greenlees,  60 

Balmaclellan,  315 

Windshiel,  98 

Carlinwark  Loch,  410 

Crossmichael,  239 

BUTE. 

Kilnotrie,  98 

Kingarth,  270 

Plunton  Castle,  388 

GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL   INDEX. 


505 


^LANARKSHIRE. 

Lanarkshire,  271,  289 
Aikbrae,  99 
Biggar,  55 
Kerswell,  97 
Carmichael,  273 
Crawford,  330 
Culter,  55,  226,  378 
Douglas,  326 
Hangingshaw,  136 
Lanark,  315,  384 
Tintot-top,  Clydesdale,  98 

MIDLOTHIAN. 

Ratho,  57 
Vogrie,  57 

MORAYSHIRE. 

Achtertyre,  136,  315,  382,  425,  468 
Orton,  393 
Rosele,  332 
Slnie,  56,  58 


Nairn,  58 


PEBBLES-SHIRE. 


Peebles-shire,  59 
Peebles,  97,  289 
Stobo  Castle,  384 

PERTHSHIRE. 

Abernethy,  56 
Ardoch,  247 
Blair  Druramond,  248 
Drumlanrick,  239 
Kilgraston,  207 
Kincardine,  289 
Muthill,  388 
Perth,  60 
Pitcaithly,  246 
Rannoch,  379 
Tay  River,  175 

,,          near  Errol,  199 

ROSS-SHIRE. 

Eddertoun,  394 
Highfield,  336 
Little  Lochbroom,  379 
Rosskeen,  137,  432 
Wester  Ord,  209 

ROXBURGHSHIR 

Roxburghshire,  336 
Eildon,  57 
Hawick,  331  ' 
Yetholm,  349^ 

STIRLINGSHIRE. 

Stirlingshire,  289,  336 
Ballagan,  273 
Bannockburn,  314 
Graham's  Dyke,  289 
Moss  of  Kincardine,  410 
Stirling,  289 

SUTHERLAND. 

Balblair,  218 
InchnadamfF,  57 
Ledbeg,  200 
Lieraboll,  218 
Rogart,  218 

WIGTONSHIRE. 

Wigtonshire,  289,  331,  432 
Balcarry,  98 
Glen  Kenns,  322 
Glenluce,  167,  192,  224 
Inch,  56 
Kilfillan,  98 
Leswalt,  56,  137 
Moss  of  Cree,  56 
Portpatrick,  135 
Stranraer,  135,  270 


IRELAND. 

Ireland,  34,  39,  63,  90,  98  to  105,  128, 138,  140,  142 
170, 176,  179,  192,  205,  208,  212,  234,  247,  250 
254>  263,  291,  293,  296,  303,  314,  317,  318,  322 
324,  326,  328,  330,  331,  333,  336,  340,  368,  371 
387,  389,  393.  398,  4°5»  4°6>  41°.  43°,  432.  440 

North  of  Ireland,  105,  207,  316,  318,  323,  329,  371 
435 

ANTRIM. 

Antrim,  100,  139,  239,  333,  339 

Armoy,  68,  99,  100,  435 

Ballycastle,  213 

Ballyclare,  212 

Ballymena,  105,  325,  428 

Ballymoney,  142,  387,  389,  406,  433 

Ballyscullion,  411 

Bann  River,  431 

Belaghey,  170 

Belfast,  139,  141 

Broughshane,  433 

Capecastle  Bog,  Armoy,  412 

Carrickfergus,  67,  358,  430 

Clough,  328,  402 

Connor,  63 

Craighilly,  139 

Craigs,  212 

Glenarm,  256 

Killyless,  219 

Kilraughts,  361 

Knockans,  331 

Lisburn,  142,  440 

Newtown  Crommolin,  141 

Toome  Bar,  Lough  Neagh,  352 

Tullygowan,  Gracehill,  67 


Armagh,  254,  362 
Lurgan,  332 
Mullylagan,  296 

CAVAN. 

Cavan,  266,  387 
Cornaconway,  361 
Diamond  Hill/Killeshandra,  361 
Killeshandra,  251 
Lough  Ramer,  436 
Thornhill,  Killina,  282 

CLARE. 

Clare,  389 

Inis  Kaltra,  Lough  Derg,  401 

CORK. 

Ballincollig,  104 
Ballybawn,  61 
Cork,  140,  359 

„      and  Mallow,  between,  358 
Crookstown,  361 
Dunmanway,  358,  361 
Inchigeela,  249 
Kanturk,  171 

DERRY  (see  Londonderry). 

DONEGAL. 

Letterkenny,  263 
Raphoe,  256 

DOWN. 
Down,  139 
Lurgan  and  Moira,  between,  208 

DUBLIN. 

Dublin,  315,  317 
Balbriggan,  142 
Clontarf,  65 
Dublin,  101,  315 
Miltown,  103 

FERMANAGH. 
Ballinamallard,  61,  100 
Belleek,  234 


506 


GEOGRAPHICAL  AND   TOPOGRAPHICAL   INDEX. 


Bo  Island,  180,  292,  466 
Enniskillen,  324,  369 

GALWAY. 

Galway,  370 

Athenry,  320,  345 

Athleague,  Bog  of  Aughrane,  207 

Claran  Bridge,  Dunkellen,  436 

Headford,  314 

Keelogue  Ford,  142,  306,  371 

Lough  Corrib,  431 

KILKENNY. 

Piltown,  Iverk,  306 


Aghadoe,  293 
Chute  Hall,  Tralee,  358 
Derrynane,  360 
Killarney,  361  , 

KING'S  COUNTY. 
King's  County,  61 
Boyne  River,  near  Edenderry,'  155 
Clonmacnoise,  379 

Downs,  176,  179,  211,  220,  293,  335,  360,  361,  410, 
411,  412,  452,  468 


Ballinamore,  236 

LIMERICK. 
Limerick,  361 
Ballynamona,  352 
Lough  Gur,  313,  436 

LONDONDERRY 

Londonderry,  141,  176,  215,  251 

Balteragh,  207 

Garvagh,  200 

Lissane,  252 

Maghera,  330,  435 

Magheratelt,  244 

Newtown  Limavady,  268,  291 

Portglenone,  361 


LONGFORt 


Longford,  81 
Carlea,  141 

Lanesborough,  101 

LOUTH. 

Greenmount,  Castle  Bellingham,  63 

MAYO. 
Ballina,  141 

MEATH. 

Meath,  140 
Athboy,  140 
Dunshaughlin,  141 

Crannoge  at,  236 
Kells,  207 
Trim,  67 


MONAGHA.V. 


Monaghan,  220,  256 
Farney,  409 
Lisletrim  Bog,  295 


Colloony,  246 
Kilrea,  247 


Tipperary,  63,  253,  272 
Burnsokane,  171 
Clonmel,  323 

Cloonmore,  Templemore,  305 
Cullen,  293,  296 
Rathkennan  Bog,  251 
Roscrea,  266 


TYRONE. 

Arboe,  142 

Ballygawley,  201,  268 

Ballynascreen,  212 

Dungannon,  358, 

Galbally,  252 

Terman,  324 

Trillick,  61.  102,  140,  141, 180,  389,  399,  466 

WESTMEATH. 

Westmeath,  88, 100,  259 
Athlone,  201,  -514 
Mullingar,  176 

WEXFORD. 

Slieve  Kileta  Hill,  266 


FRANCE. 
Gaul,  300,  426 
France,  41,  83,  94,  95,  114,  119,  142,  281,  287,  297, 

301,  369,  401,  403,  425,  480 
Franc?,  North  of,  19,  81,  116,  304,  379,  448,  480, 

481,  483 
France,  North-west  of,  81,  115 

South  of,  57,  85,  13!,  153,  234,  479,  484 
Brittany,  117,  124,  135,  181,  223,  403,  412,  417,  419, 

Normandy,  43,  79,  91 


Cormoz,  300,  301 
Aisne,  250 


Ferte  Hauterive,  La,  458 
Gannat,  20  j 

AUDK. 

Carcassonne,  390 
Cascastel,  122 

BOUCHES   DU   RHONE. 

Bounias,  Cave  of,  223 


Alies,  287 

Mons,  St.  Flour,  307 

CALVADOS. 

Escoville,  86 

Fresne  la  Mere,  180,  183,  189,  209,  375 


Alise  Ste.  Rcine,  293,  315,  341 

Auxonne,  356 

Cosne,  300 

Magny  Lambert,  300 

COTES    DU   NORD. 

Latnballe,  116 

Moussaye,  Plenee-Jugon,  115,  116,  445,  477 


Doubs,  43,  172 
Besan£on,  293 

Beaurieres,  458 
Marsanne,  307 

Bernay,  77,  78,  81 
Evreux,  52 
Gasny,  77 
Les  Andelys,  79 


Lutz,  122 


EL-RE   ET   LOIR! 


GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


507 


FINISTERB. 

Finistere,  43 

MEURTHE. 

Frouard,  458 

Carnoel,  243 

Kerhue-Bras,  238 

MORlilHAX. 

Ploneour,  215,  405 

Morbihan,  445 

L'Orient,  122 

CARD. 

Uzes,  301 

Questembert,  215,  449 
Villeder,  86 

.  GIRONDE. 

Langoiran,  97 

OISE. 

Beauvais,  171 

HAUTES  ALPES. 

Compiegne,  52,  304 

Hautes  Alpes,  176    , 
Rame,  238 

Jonquieres,  77 
Mareuil-sur-Ourcq,  54 

Reallon,  458 
Ribiers,  131,  184,  458 

Noailles,  252 
Pont-point,  131,  142,  176 
St.  Pierre-en-Chatre,  192 

HAUTE  ARIEGE. 

Haute  Ariege,  97 

PAS  DE  CALAIS. 

Chaussee  Brunehault,  250 

HAUTE   LOIRE. 

Hewelinghen,  238 

Haute  Loire,  131 

Cheylounet,  254 
Polignac,  293 
St.  Jullien,  Chapteuil,  215 

PUY  DE  DOME. 

Manson,  458 
Royat,  41 

HAUTES   PYRENEES. 

RHONE. 

Tarbes,  97 

Lyons,  52,  223 
„        Rhone  at,  287 

HAUTE  SAONE. 

,,        Saone  at,  441 

Haute  Saone,  52 

SAONE  ET   LOIRE. 

Auxonne,  248 

Chalon-sur-Saone,  180,  183 

ILLE   ET  VILAINE. 

Macon,  441 

Rennes,  287 

SAVOIE. 

INDRE   ET   LOIRE. 

Chatellier  d'Amboise,  172 

Savoie,  95,  131,  172,  191,  305,  315.  34*,  368,  484 
Donsard,  210 

St.  Genouph,  207,  401,  435 
Tours,  448 

Gresine,  230 
Lac  du  Bourget,  129,  131,  180,  184,  387,  432,  449 

ISERE. 

SEINE. 

Isere,  131 
Grenoble,  88 

Seine  River,  at  Paris,  77,  157,  160,  176,  183,  201, 
208,  221,  238,  243,  249,  272,  283,  313,  327,  398 

La  Balme,  131 

Vienne,  55,  180 

SEINE  ET  OISE. 

JURA. 

Seine  et  Oise,  281 

Jura,  43,  131,  172,  293 

Angerville,  180 
Argenteuil,  279 

Fondene3de  Larnaud,  68,  131,  167,  176,  184,  192, 

SOMME. 

448,  456 
Orgelet,  129 

Somme,  250 
Abbeville,  91,  92,  335 

NORD. 

Albert,  279 

Lille,  78 

Amiens,  52,  157,  176,  183,  201,  206,  208,  249,  371, 
398 

LOIRE   1NFERIEURE. 

Caix  304 

Marais  de  Donges,  238 
Nantes,  180,  215,  281 
,,         Loire  at,  252,  339 

Dreuil,  109,  no,  129,  144,  176,  208,  283,  370,  393, 
403,  404,  405 
Somme  Valley,  180 

Penhouet,  249 

1  TAR\ 

St.  Nazaire-sur-Loire,  281 

Briatexte,  180,  215 

LOIR  ET  CHER. 

Lavene,  215 

Loir  et  Cher,  160 

VAUCLUSE. 

'Billy,  432 

Avignon,  131 

Theil,  356 

VIENNE. 

LOT. 

Miers,  293 

Notre-Dame  d'Or,  176,  214,  221,  398,  441,  447 

MAINE   ET  LOIRE. 

Saumur,  123 

MANCHE,   LA. 

GERMAN  EMPIRE. 
Germany,  19,  52,  94.  95,  "4,  W,  W>  *87.  *93, 

Manche,  La,  129,  215,  230 

North  "erf,"  80,  '298,   315,  316,  379,  48° 

Cotentin,  448 
La  Parnelle,  398 

MARNE. 

482,  483 
South  of,  85,  161 
",         West  of,  83,  479,  483 

La  Gorge  Meillet,  403    , 
Lusancy,  109 

Hercinia,  31 
Thuringia,  109 

508 


GEOGRAPHICAL    AND    TOPOGRAPHICAL    INDEX. 


Baden,  85 

Gedinne,  300 

Bohemia  425 

Maulin,  109 

Brandenburg,  299 

Hesse,  85 

SCANDINAVIA. 

Mecklenburg,  112,  215,  363 
Palatinate,  238 
Pomerania,  116 

Scandinavia,  147,  184,  101,  195,  234,  236,  252,  274 
287,  296,  298,  408,  474,  478,  481,  482,  486 

Rhenish  Hesse,  282 
„        Prussia,  85,  95,  481 

'NORWAY. 

Saxony,  419,  425 

Norway,  419 

Silesia,  425 

Ackenbach,  43 

DENMARK. 

Benfeld,  143 

Denmark,  30,  40,  52,  54,  60,  69,  95,  134,  159,  163, 

Bingen,  353 

270,  286,  296,  298,  309,  315,  316,  340/363,  372 

Blengow,  262 

379,  451 

Bonn,  85 
Camenz,  202,  384,  390,  459 

Iceland,  71 
Jutland,  30,  163 

Eikrath,  448 

Erxleben,  288 

Hvidegaard,  309 

Giessen,  91 

Kallundborg,  296     ' 

Gnadenfeld,  448 
Gottingen,  77 
Grossenhain,  459 

Kongshoi,  301 
Lydshoi,  309 
Nydam,  159 

Griinberg,  441 

Soborg,  272 

Kcmpten,  173,  176 
Lammersdorf,  184 

Store-Hedinge,  151,  163 
Treenhoi,  302 

Landshut,  85 

Vimose,  159,  195 

Magdeburg,  298 

Medingen,  441 

SWEDEN. 

Neu  -  Ruppi  n  ,  ,  262 

Oberwald-behrungen,  308 
Pfaffenburg,  144 

Sweden,  40,  52,  129,  298,  419,  425,  432,  4Si 
Gotland,  448 
Smaaland,  196 

Stade   184' 

Arup,  262 

Stettin,  288 

Hasslof,.  252 

Vaudrevanges,  458 

Watsch,  145 

SWITZERLAND. 

Zaborowo,  133 

Lake-dwellings,  13,  86,  95,  150,  166,  167,  172,  180, 

191,  208,  236,  280,  287,  297,  305,  315,  369,  370, 

AUSTRIAN  EMPIRE. 

383,  395.  401,  403,  407,  408,  480,  484,  486,  487 
Lake  of  Bienne,  180,  300,  431 

Austria,  40,  85 

,,             ,,        Locras,  422 

Dalmatia,  172,  183 
Hungary,  40,  43,  119,  147,  158,  161,  180,  236,  272, 
276,  318,  327,  419,  432,  450,  478,  482 

I  ake  of  Bienne,  Mrerigen,  13,  114,  153,   172,  176, 
180,  184,  195,  238,  437,  449 
„        Oefeli,  237 

Styria,  119,  355,  413 

,,             ,,        Nidau,  221 

„        Geneva,  130,  183 

Agram,  177 
Aninger,  131 

'     „             „         Eaux  Vives,  180,  210,  215,  432 
,,             „         La  Tiniere,  26 

Brasy,  308 

„         Merges,  441,  456 

Brixen,  355 

„        Luissel,  288 

Gratz/2885 

,,        Neuchatel,  Auvernier,  114,  131    176,  180 

Hallein,.i52,  153 

183 

Hallstatt,  23,  25,  69,  95,  144,  157,  181,  184,  229, 

„                  ,,          Concise,  288 

274,  288,  293,  308,  342,  355,  389,  393,  394,  401, 
403,  405,  409,  4x3,  485,  486 

„        Estavayer,  425 
,,        Pfaffikon,    Robenhausen,   on,   150,   427, 

KLorno,  308 

456 

Laibach,  246,  393,  428,  451 

Echallens,  131 

Macarsca,  172,  183 
Mattrey,  355 
Pressburg,  166 

Raron,  154 
Sion,  Valais,  260 
Unter-Uhldingen,  in  the  Ueberlinger  See,  317,  427 

Przemysl,  180 

Vienna,  246 

ITALY. 

HOLLAND. 

Italy,  41,  52,  86,  104,  155,  160,  234,  241,  259,  271, 
272,  274,  280,  287,  297,  315,  334,  341,  369,  403, 

Holland,  77 

445,  480,  483,  484 

Deurne,  173,  176,  221 
Diiren,  133,  176 

Etruna,  39,  355,  394,  400,  412,  413,  425,  476,  481 
Bologna,  104,  143,  172,  173,  176,  180,  183,  184,  185, 

Emmen,  173 
Groningen,  152 

210,  217,  288,  341,  448 
Alban  Necropolis,  341 

Masseyck,  82 
Nymegen,  89 

Castione,  153 
Chiusi,  155,  480 

Herculaneum,  32 

BELGIUM. 

LakeofVarese,  430,  437 

Modena,  401 

Bernissart,  215 
Bevay,  116 

Sardinia,  Island  of,  426,  438 
"  Terramare,"  236,  434 

GEOGRAPHICAL  AND  TOPOGRAPHICAL  INDEX. 


509 


SPAIN. 

Spain,  19,  43,  90,  97,  161,  238,  271,  275/279,  354, 

Arabia,  318 
„      Sarbout-el-Khadem,  8 
,      Wady-Magarah,  8 

419,  424,  425,  480 
Astunas,  97 
CiudadReal,  43,  271 

•„     Wady-Nash,  8 
CamboVat7^55 

Niebla,  184 
Oviedo,  97 
Sierra  de  Baza,  97 

China,  19,  263,  329 
,,       Sanda  Valley,  Yunan,  142 

PORTUGAL. 
Portugal,  425 

Cyprus,  Island  of,  40,  184,  310 
„                Tamassus,  14 
India,  Gungeria,  2,  40 
Southern  Babylonia,  Tel  Sifr,  9,  40,  211,  383 

GREECE. 

AFRICA. 

Greece,  10,  160,  161,  297,  315,  318 
Archipelago,  40 

Africa,  149,  181,  3°6,  34°,  359,  387,  393,  451 
•ttgypt,  6,  7,  8,  147,  261,  298,  318,  391,  419,  475, 
„        Great  Kantara,  298 

„            Scyros,  18 

„        Karnak,  6 

,,            Santorin,  184 
,,            Thermia,  40,  160 
Dodona,  69 

Thebes,  7,  185,  234 
Mauretania,  354 

Mycena;,  297     . 
Salamis,  161 

AMERICA,  NORTH. 

Thera,  297 

America,  North,  43,  383,  476 

Mexico,  4,  43,  166 

MEDITERRANEAN  COUNTRIES. 

Wisconsin,  2 

Mediterranean  Countries,  478,  480,  483 

AMERICA,  SOUTH. 

RUSSIAN  EMPIRE. 

Bolivia,  165 

„        La  Paz,  148,  165 

Russian  Empire,  477 

Chili,  Copiapo,  145 

Finland,  299,  477 

Ecuador,  148 

Siberia,  131,  143,  177,  477      . 

Peru,  4,  148,  165 
,,      Lima,  166 

Inwa,  the,  263 

Eabugy,  336 
rtch,  143 

OCEANIA,  &c. 
Australia,  263 

Kiew,  124 
Viatka,  263 
Yenissei,  the,  263 

Borneo,  340 
Fiji,  359 
Japan,  275 

ASIA. 

Java,  142 
Madagascar,  340 

Asia'  3Mmor,   Hissarlik,   the    presumed    site    of 
Troy,  40,  166,  224,  310,  438 

Malacca,  424 
New  Caledonia,  263 
South  Sea  Islands,  34 

A     000  033  025     8 


